A Link to Equestria
by W. Quill
Summary: In his search for someone dear to him, the Hero of Time is tricked by a fairy spirit and drawn to Equestria, where he soon finds that both realms share not only long lost connections, but also enemies both thought gone. The alliance of Hyrule's greatest nemesis with the thousand-year-old menace of Equestria is set on permanently eliminating those who foiled their plans.
1. Trouble in your Wake

_'In the land of Hyrule, there echoes a legend. A legend held dearly by the Royal Family that tells of a boy..._

_A boy who, after battling evil and saving Hyrule, crept away from the land that had made him a legend..._

_Done with the battles he once waged across time, he embarked on a journey. A secret and personal journey..._

_A journey in search of a beloved and invaluable friend..._

_A friend with whom he parted ways when he finally fulfilled his heroic destiny and took his place among legends..._

_But as he would soon come to realize, such a place is not always desirable, for when one enemy falls, two more rise in their place..._

_And for harmony to be kept, the fall of one hero must bring forth the birth of seven more...'_

Head hung low, the boy clad in green shuddered.

He needn't hold on to the steed that carried him across the ever-thickening haze. The layer of clouds granted the woods where the people do not wander the rightful adjective that was its namesake: the Lost Woods. Trees sprouted from the ground in a sort of organized chaos, as if their owner had simply scattered their seeds across the land without the least of concerns for where they would fall.

Man and horse, neither one had a destination, and neither one knew for how long they had been journeying. Days, weeks, months… it didn't seem to matter. Step by step, the filly continued to trek through the overgrown vegetation, the slightest breeze agitating unseen foliage high above.

Why had they ventured into this forest, forsaken by the Hylian and feared by the Kokiri, to begin with?

_'They say that when non-fairy folk enter the Lost Woods, they become monsters!'_

The melodious whisper of a song echoed in the back of his mind, drawn from memories of a place gone by. Memories of the hollow tree his house had been built on. Memories of the deity who, prior to his death, kept safe the forest they inhabited. But above all, memories of… her.

The gentle wind that caressed the woods suddenly stopped. An eerie stillness flooded the atmosphere around them. They had stopped. Something was moving under the cover of the mist.

Then a chime to which the boy had grown attached: the signature sound of a fairy's flight.

"HEEAH!" the boy swiftly cried, prompting the horse forward with a quick whip of his legs. Epona complied and galloped into the heart of the haze without a moment's hesitation.

Certainty, however, was not in the rider's mind. Should he draw his sword and confront this potential danger? He would be utterly unguarded if this concealed enemy were to ambush him. He had learned throughout his life that this was not something he could afford.

Eyes set on the path ahead, he unsheathed the weapon. Its golden hilt shimmered faintly under the little light that shone through the treetops.

The Kokiri Sword had been by his side through all sorts of dangers, and had been his weapon of choice when he forced the swordsmen at a Hylian training ground to swallow their scorn. He had defeated them one by one, thus obtaining the title of knight he so desired from Hyrule's court. If he could take on these mighty warriors and still rise victorious, then surely he would be able to defeat anything that crossed his path.

He had, after all, been dubbed '_The Hero of Time_'.

"Easy, Epona," he muttered, lowering his head towards his steed's mane. The filly slowed down, eventually coming to a complete halt just a step away from what appeared to be the abrupt end of the path. A quick hop later, he was walking towards what he was tempted to call the edge of the world.

He couldn't judge just how steep the cliff he stood upon was – the same persistent layer of clouds that had surrounded him now blocked his sight to the bottom of the lengthy fall. He didn't plan to find out either.

Taking a step away from the unstable edge, he began to analyze his surroundings. He no longer felt the presence of the unidentified sprite, but on the other hand, he had been driven off-course.

_Was I even following a course?_ he paused to ponder.

The familiar buzzing of a fairy's was the answer of the woods. His eyes hastily shifted from one end of the foggy barrier to the other. He scanned it for any trace of the sprite, be it the glittering trail it always left behind or the tiny orb of light that was its body.

"N-Navi?" he stuttered, daring to take a step towards the dimly lit maze. "Is that you?"

He could feel the fairy closing in at an almost frustratingly slow pace. It was barely noticeable, but he could see the powder they emanated from their tiny, glowing bodies flutter away, carried by a light waft of air. He remained still, carefully prodding the mist for any source of light he could use as a hint.

The tiniest flicker of radiance in the dark of the woods was enough to spur the boy back on his saddle. Epona was once more racing past the immeasurably tall trees, hurdling over their exposed roots and the pits they concealed in a wild pursuit.

_Please, don't go away again._

With every crack of the whip, the incandescent dot in the distance grew bigger and brighter. His heart skipped a beat as the realization that he would finally be together with his friend struck.

_Why are you going away?_

Epona's nearly deafening neighs went completely unnoticed. The fairy owned his undivided attention. It had stopped less than a second's gallop away from them, idly floating up and down. He _knew_ this was his only chance.

Then suddenly, propelled by a powerful force beneath him, he soared through the air. His arms were outstretched. It was an insane attempt to reach the fairy, grab her and drag her down with him.

But he didn't make it.

It was in the peak of this ascent, when he was inches away from her, that he managed to properly observe the fairy. His young heart was shattered into a thousand pieces when he found that this sprite had nothing to do with the one he had been searching.

There was no silver core to a blue radiance in its body - only a faded green color that grew darker towards its center. What should be a pure white to azure gradient in her wings was not but a constant, glass-like cerulean.

He struggled for words. Time had stopped. Whether to help or to further torture him, Link couldn't tell. "Who…"

"Wait... You're... _Link_," the thing spoke. Time resumed its flow. He was falling.

All it took was a moment before everything faded to the deepest shade of black. He didn't dare to look down. His only wish was that this fall did not have an end.

It was as if the world bent and distorted itself in the oddest of ways. That was possibly the best description Link could offer of his current location, despite not being able to see anything beyond the pit's veil of darkness.

Though his sight was of no obvious use, it still felt like he could see all the ways in which the world contorted and became something entirely new, something completely strange to him.

As if it was the work of a foe mighty enough to destroy the Goddesses. It was, after all, destroying their work. No weapon could defeat this enemy; no shield could defend him from this fall.

A foe… in the midst of the darkness fluttered white little specks of dust. There was a multitude of them, just like the ones that dotted the skies in the clearest nights.

Unlike the starry night sky, this pattern of lights had nothing remotely soothing about it. Such was the hostility that was patent in this collection of scintillating dots that Link could almost touch it.

'_I'll get to you… in time…_' its ominous voice seemed to threaten, preparing to fade into the sinister nothingness of the fall once again and leave the boy to his own devises.

The demise of the Hero of Time would be a depressing pit that ridiculed him. Because of his lack of attention to his faithful steed's pleas. Yes, this would be a suitable end. To disappear without a trace in a forest, whereabouts unknown to everyone in Hyrule.

Everyone… save for that fairy.

But he had seen her. When one shares as much time as he did with a person – or, in this case, a fairy – one becomes fairly able to recognize them. And when it came to a fairy like Navi, Link knew he could recognize her a mile away.

Then _why_ had he chased _this_ fairy? Why had her color not been a telltale sign that this was not his former companion?

Questions began to flood his mind, but he disregarded them. As long as he was plunging to his death, he had all the time in the world. He was surprisingly aware: he could feel the weight of the Ocarina in his pocket, the comfort of the handmade scabbard that held his sword, the cold metal of the shield strapped against his back.

On that note, the temperature was dropping. Was the center of the world an icy cavern? He had no good memories of ice and caves – the time when Zora's Domain froze over was enough to imprint a lasting hatred of cold in his mind.

No, that couldn't be it. Though the air was definitely growing colder the longer he fell, it definitely didn't feel like there was ice down below.

The murmur of a roar reached his ears, causing his curiosity to peak. The possibility that there was a waterfall at the bottom of the pit rekindled the flame of hope in his heart. It was his only chance of survival.

Light was starting to tear through the haze that surrounded him, and he welcomed it with open arms. This confirmed his suspicions: he was getting close to the end. Not long after the first hint of radiance appeared, the pit was flooded with a pale blue light. The sound was growing louder. His face was pelted by droplets of cold water, cueing him to get ready.

A quick adjustment to his position was enough to guarantee the perfect dive. He could only pray to the Goddesses that the massive lake beneath him was deep enough to safely cushion his fall.

He broke straight through the lake's serene waters.

His mind had barely had time to recover when his lungs begged for air. Several powerful kicks and arm strokes later, he breached the surface and gasped loudly. Only then did the water's cold temperature get to him.

Not wasting a moment, he paddled towards the closest shore he could find. Link still tried to stand once he reached land, but found himself unable to. With an exhausted sigh, he fell on the rocky floor on his back, slowly taking in the view of the immense cave while the echo of his shield's metallic clang faded away. It was indeed an immense cave. An immensely _desolate_ cave.

"Ep-Epona?" he called between wheezes. He tried again, then one more time, just to make sure.

His calls remained unanswered. It was time for a new plan.

He took the deep blue ocarina out of a pocket and shakily raised it to his mouth. Merely three blows escaped his mouth, ones barely resembling his steed's summoning tune. Giving up altogether, he brought the instrument close his chest and grasped it as tightly as he could.

_There has to be a way out of here… I need to go, and I need to do it now._

It only took an attempt at rising to his feet to discover that he was still too tired. He managed nothing but a poorly executed sit-up before his back hit the rocky floor like a dead weight. The shield cushioned the fall for what it was worth. The resulting clank of steel against stone echoed throughout the cavern.

_Okay… I'll take five…_

As soon as time for resting elapsed, Link continued his trip. The Goddesses had smiled on him, this time around. He had found a path to follow.

It was an uphill tunnel that dug into the cave. Navy blue crystals sprouted from the walls in a disorganized fashion, illuminating his way with their pale glow. Mining equipment was strewn across the ground here and there, often bundled with piles of boulders. Just looking at the place made memories of Hyrule's own ice caves surface.

Link shivered at the thought and grasped the sword's hilt tighter. His green tunic and hat were still partially damp from his earlier dive into the lake.

His ears twitched at the sound of a pebble that rolled down its pile. A quick look around revealed there weren't any threats.

_Good thing, too,_ he thought. At this point, the sword weighed more than a sledgehammer. An enemy to fight was the last thing he needed.

His mind drifted back to Epona and her well being. Play her favorite tune though he might, she would not answer. The possibility that the fairy, the root of all of his problems, could be behind her disappearance crossed his mind. He started to grind his teeth. There would be hell to pay. There was a thousand and one ways to torture a fairy, and he'd resort to all of them. His frown became a devious grimace.

The bubble that contained his machinations burst when a gust of freshness snapped him back to reality. It felt different. It didn't smell like coal or rust. It was a breeze that carried pure, breathable air. A smile was already tugging at his lips.

_I must be getting close!_ He thought, barely containing an excited squeal as he broke into a frenzied run. Voices began to reverberate across the tunnels, even the air appeared to be hinting at how close he was.

After rounding a corner, he spotted a weak source of light. One last trek up this new slanted tunnel, alongside the rails that sprouted from the ground, was all he needed to do.

Or so he thought. As soon as he arrived to the top, he found that a crisscrossed barricade of wooden planks covered the exit. Very little light made it through the gaps. Peeking through them, he caught a glimpse of a staircase, and beyond that, the sun, the sky and the rooftops of a town.

Motivated by this discovery, he unsheathed his sword and lashed out at the obstacle. Just as he had predicated, the old, musty boards didn't stand a chance against the might of his blade. With several satisfying cracks, they were reduced to splinters.

The sword returned to its scabbard once there was enough space for the boy to crawl through. His naked knees left the soft sand of the cave and entered the coldness of a stone floor. Still gasping, he ran up the stairs, eager to bathe in the sunlight.

The feeling had been as glorious as he had imagined. The touch of the sun's rays on his skin was a blessing from above. He basked at the top of the stairs, arms wide open so as to collect as much heat as possible. The clamor of the crowd was reduced to an imperceptible buzz in his ears. A broad, toothy smile spread across his features.

He heard hooves clopping on stone. Finally prying his eyes from the circle of light, Link looked around with a hopeful gaze.

His smile died right then.

There was not one man or woman, child or otherwise, to be seen in those streets. Amidst the elegant gray buildings strolled not humans, but equines. Ponies with coats and manes dyed with every color he could imagine. They talked, they wore clothes, they sat at tables and sipped drinks from porcelain cups. They behaved exactly like human beings.

Surely, not being with Epona was getting the better of him. His mind replaced anything resembling a human with a horse. Yes, that would explain why they behaved just like humans!

He had subconsciously stepped away from the stairs. His step was slow, befitting the awestruck expression he wore. The ponies that took notice of him raised their eyebrows as they passed, sometimes dropping a comment in a language he couldn't understand.

A pony in particular approached him. The way its eyes were half-lidded made him realize how expressive they were. Something told him this was a mare. If anything, because of the way she flicked her tail at his face as they came across each other. It had a strange fragrance, like the morning mist mixed with sweat's revolting scent. He jerked his head back. The mare _winked_ before disappearing back into the crowd.

Link pondered briefly if he was still asleep. He touched the side of his face with a hand, where the tail had hit him hardest. The slap had felt very real. The fleeting sting had, too.

Someone was calling him. Or so it felt to him. He spun on one foot to find that a pony at a stall's door was, indeed, eyeing him with a mischievous smile. It was rubbing its hooves together, and ushering him closer to its store. While an aged sign was hung above the door, a curtain concealed the shop's window display.

All sorts of trinkets decorated the walls of the shady building. Paintings, little statuettes and paintings of ponies in dramatic poses, the sorts of items nobody wanted.

A little bell announced the door's closing. The pony scooted behind the dusty counter as soon as Link entered. It said something and tapped its hoof. Getting nothing of the equine's blabber, Link pointed at an old-looking armor.

He hadn't thought it through, but now that he thought about it, the armor was the perfect size for Epona. The shopkeeper laughed. It retrieved an abacus from under the counter and began to fiddle with its beads. Once it was finished, it announced the result and extended a hoof for Link to place his money.

The boy reached into the bag of Rupees that was strapped to his... belt...

His hand was grasping at nothing. The bag of Rupees wasn't there. His whole wallet was gone. He could feel his heartbeat increasing its pace. How could he have been so careless?

With a glimmer of hope in his eyes, he remembered he still had one last hope. Taking off his hat, Link felt inside it and pulled his hand out as soon as he found what he was looking for. A purple Rupee, one much bigger than his hand. Fifty Rupees, right there.

The shopkeeper just laughed again, leaving Link frowning in confusion. A hoof pushed his hand away, and a golden coin fell on the counter with a few clinks. Link didn't need a translation to know what this meant.

As he put his money away, the pony pointed at his shield, and then raised a bag full of the golden coins. It spoke a few words, and then flashed the mischievous smirk Link had become used to seeing in the past minutes.

The boy instinctively glanced back and placed a hand on the shield, as though the pony was about to steal it. Not much time was needed to come up with an answer. After offering a curt shake of his head, Link turned to exit the shop.

There was a shout, and something very nearly struck the back of the boy's head. The shield ended up taking the damage with a loud clatter.

That was all Link needed to know that he had to go away. He didn't look back as he stormed out of the store. The little bell almost flew out of its place when the door underneath it was shut close.

He found himself lost again in the chaotic mess that was the city of equines. It began to feel the same as tying a rope around his neck. He was struggling for air, spinning wildly on his feet in search of a way out.

It was in the midst of this action that he found a glorious sight. A castle that greatly overshadowed the town with both its complex architecture and sheer size. It was built into the mountain, which soared even higher than the palace itself, and made him realize just how far away from home he was.

This was not Hyrule, and this was not a dream. He had concluded that much.

Before he could process any of these thoughts, something - or some pony - bumped against his back. The boy fell to his knees, given how unexpected the push had been. Even more unexpected than that was the frightened shriek the pony that had pushed him gave. He barely had time to look at the guilty party, as he rolled to the side just in time to avoid being hit by a pair of hooves.

The crowd had stopped to watch. The pony was taller than him by at least a head. Its mane and tail were golden, with a lock of hair straying from the others to dangle over an eye.

What surprised Link the most was the horn on its forehead. Unicorns were the stuff of legend in Hyrule - though, admittedly, so had been the Master Sword. If said legends were to be trusted, then this pony could use _magic_. What was more, this was a white unicorn. The purest of breeds.

From the way it backpedaled away from him, however, Link questioned how much of a threat the pony really was. It kept yelling desperately, flicking its head from one side of the street to the other.

It was crying for help, Link soon realized.

To his great relief, the locals barely seemed to care. They simply laughed or traded quiet, snide remarks. Either way, they ended up turning to leave. Link breathed a relieved sigh; trouble was the last thing he needed at that moment.

Any and all hopes of peace were shattered the moment an imposing bellow sounded from both ends of the street. The crowd of ponies moved aside, revealing what Link didn't want to see: armored ponies running in his direction with weapons hoisted. He could guess what they were based on the heavy, gilded armors they sported.

For some reason, their step faltered when they saw the boy. Some of the bulkier stallions even smiled. The frightful unicorn behind him gave another demanding shout, and the guards' expressions changed completely. Their eyes were set on Link's sword.

Before the boy could react, the guards surrounded him. He caught a glimpse of the white unicorn's eyes as it stepped away. All he saw in them was lust. They bore the same look he'd seen so many times in the eyes of the Hylian nobles. Suddenly, he lost any semblance of fondness for this place.

One of the guards snarled something at him. His spear was suspended by magic, Link noticed. They did know how to use magic then.

He had no idea of what to do. The only punishment for getting caught by the watchmen of Hyrule Castle's courtyard was being thrown out of the castle grounds. In this unknown land, he could only imagine what they would do to him.

So he did what he knew best. He reached for his sword.

The guards reacted almost immediately. The end of a spear flew against him, forcing Link to block the strike with his own blade. Despite the events that had transpired, he managed to push the spear away, thus creating an opening in the guard's defense. He ducked under the spear and leaped at the guard, ready to strike the sturdiest point in its helmet. The last thing he wanted to do was blemish his record with murder.

The blow had the effect he intended: the stallion was stunned, allowing Link to jump over its head and begin his run down the street.

He didn't go far. Just steps away from his starting point, he felt his body grow lighter. Moments later, his feet left the ground. He was being manipulated by their magic.

Struggle though he might to escape, a force field held him in the air. The guards rushed to surround him again, aiming the sharp ends of their spears directly at the boy's face. Link still repelled some of these with his own weapon, but he was stripped of even that by the overpowering pull of magic.

By now, the ponies who had disregarded the scene had returned to admire their guardians' handiwork. He realized he was being held aloft like a prize, so all the ponies could see that he had been neutralized. There were gasps, curious gazes were cast upon him, ponies murmured among themselves. Even the guards were laughing at him, as if to pretend that he hadn't been that difficult to capture.

Then, when it seemed long enough, an incisive pain flooded the back of his head. The world stumbled to darkness shortly after.


	2. Execution

The scorching wind… it never changed. It seared the lands that were unfortunate enough to stand in its way. No matter when or where it blew, it brought only one thing with it.

Death.

This was the Gerudo _Desert_, after all. How the Royal Family had succeeded in negotiating with the tribe of thieves, no-one couldn't tell. But to negotiate the execution of the Gerudo's only male in so long at a location they worshipped was surprising news. It betrayed just how greatly Hyrule had been changing in the recent years. The Sages of Hyrule, the infinitely wise, eternally faithful spirits that swore allegiance to the king, had as much interest in such changes as there was water in that haunted desert.

In the opinion of the Sage of Light, leader of the council of sages, the man whose life they were about to reap could be thrown into Lake Hylia with five iron balls tied to his feet. He would not be missed. Not by the Hylians, not by the Gerudos, not even the Moblins would mourn his death.

Perhaps such an execution would prove ineffective, however. Ganondorf was no ordinary man. He was a demon capable of a million tricks. He would likely make it in freeing himself from the heavy binds. Then, he would disappear without a trace again. Hylia knew how hard it had been to chase him through the verdant fields of Hyrule after a courageous fairy boy discovered his plans to conquer the kingdom.

Alas, that was not a matter of his concern, nor was it his decision to make. He did not dare voice his thoughts either; it was not his place as a Sage to do so. Sages were beyond advisors. Once upon a time, the Hylian King relied on them to supply their ancient wisdom, and heeded their advice when such was required. In the present, their task had been reduced to that of an executioner. They were called to deliver the 'sanctified justice', as the king had called it, so that the thieves and prisoners they killed could find their way to Hylia.

_His Majesty knows what he is doing,_ the sage thought, staying true to the unwavering faithfulness that the sages were famous for.

He cast a discreet glance at the other sages. A total of five others composed his council. Today, he was positioned rather oddly. He was almost detached from the council, even though he led it. Usually, the duty of terminating the prisoner's life befell upon him. Today was different.

It had been deliberated that the finishing blow should be dealt by the hand of the Sage of Water. Donning their white vests and masks of eternal neutrality, the sages were arranged one next to the other in front of a gigantic slab of charcoal rock. A pair of chains slithered from its top to the wrists of the struggling, devilish fiend. His eyes burned with a thirst for vengeance. They bore a dangerous gaze capable of piercing through one's soul – almost literally so.

As the Sage of Water began to mutter the necessary words to enchant the sword before him, the thief's mouth contorted into a snarl, and his head slowly rose in accordance with the tip of the sacred blade of light. The Sage of Light felt that no words were necessary for this brutal ritual of death. It would be a clean, quick execution, much undeserved for the man he was.

The moments that followed would remain hazy in his mind for a long time.

The sword twirled on itself a couple of times before pointing skyward in front of the Sage of Water. There was silence.

Then, the blade whistled through the air. The sickeningly acute screech of steel piercing through bone filled the air. The sages were unfazed even as the man's body twitched violently. The chains didn't allow it to move. Ganondorf had reacted just as little. A grumble was all he uttered before his eyes closed and his head drooped. His body hung limply from the chains that kept him imprisoned. The threat that was the Prince of Darkness was gone. Dead.

...if only that were true.

The Sage of Light's head arched back in perfect synch with the sudden shudder of the man's hands. The placid expression on the sage's mask slowly became a disturbed frown.

Ganondorf _laughed_. The man was suddenly overcome with life. He stood up and threw his fists forward, as if to punch the sages. The thick chains shivered and creaked, but held him back.

The Sage of Water gasped. The wise men, stripped of their only weapon and unsure of what to do, looked on. They could only watch as, one by one, the bolts that kept the locks in place shot in all directions.

The demon finally succeeded in releasing his left hand. They could only consider what they saw to be the single greatest horror they had ever witnessed in their ethereal lives.

The golden mark of the sacred Triforce shone on the back of his palm.

The Sage of Water visibly retreated. Ganondorf just cackled madly, mocking at the way his executioner had frozen in fear. When the last bolt failed to accomplish its only duty, the thief bounced off the monolith, arm outstretched toward the sage. The Sage of Water didn't so much as gasp before his neck was crushed in the man's grip. Just like that, the wise spirit disintegrated in a cloud of pure white specks of dust, which were carried away by the disgustingly hot breeze.

The other sages all took a step backwards, and then more to make sure they were out of man's reach. No, this was no longer a man. Those were the eyes of a beast, of an incredibly powerful devil, the stare of a madman. Without hesitation, he removed the sword from its chest. A toothy grin scarred his face, and a maniacal laughter burst forth. He was a bloodthirsty, insane demon.

In the Sages's darkest hour, only one solution appeared viable to spare their lives and the lives of the Hylian people. As if it had been orchestrated, all sages turned to the rear of the amphitheatre, preparing to raise their hands at the Mirror of Twilight. They would banish the fiend to the dimension where only the damned roamed. A suiting end for the one who claimed to rule evil.

They never did call upon the mirror's power, for before them did not stand the Mirror of Twilight. Their only hope of banishing this man to somewhere away from Hyrule was not there. In its place was a cloud as dark as the night sky, made of celestial dust and stars, surrounding the precious artifact. It rippled and whirled around the mirror.

The screech of something _sharp_ scraping on glass filled the execution grounds. The wise men, trapped in their own confusion, did not even react. The ancient runes etched upon the mirror's surface were wiped out of existence before their eyes. New, deformed lines were appearing in their place. They were ugly inscriptions written in a language not one of the six present had ever seen.

And though they were frightened, the condemned man held no fear in the gaze he cast directly at this nebulous being. Curiosity was possibly the best way to describe the spellbound manner with which he observed the birth of a new mirror, one which's purpose they could only speculate.

Bearing a smug expression upon his face, he stepped forward, the triangular mark on the back of his open hand glittering ever brighter as he raised it at the ominous cloud. The air stilled, the sages but mere bystanders, paralyzed with unspoken words of terror and disgust.

Perhaps considering its work on the mirror done, the cloud floated down, towards the Gerudo. Even when he was being completely enveloped by the forthcoming mist, Ganondorf didn't utter a sound. He breathed in the cloud until it was no more. A deep blue aura slowly appeared around his body, like a flame that inspired further fright in the minds of the onlookers.

"Your land will be spared... for the time being," _it_ spoke, its voice a cavernous howl. It seemed capable of throwing the sages off their feet should its volume rise in the least.

The burning monster's eyes were set on the ancient artifact. The hand, still raised towards the cloud's former position, slightly adjusted its angle to point directly at the modified mirror. "They speak the truth… only the true ruler of the Twilight Realm may destroy this relic."

An inexplicable shimmer erupted from the new lines drawn upon the mirror's surface. It reclined back on its own, projecting its light upon the massive black stone where the man had been imprisoned.

Rings of light with engravings of complex designs materialized in thin air, rotating in different directions as the stone drew closer and their radius grew wider. Once they touched the grand rock, the strange patterns seemed to scar the monolith's shell. Soon, the projection on the mirror's surface had been copied exactly onto the rock. The sages knew what was taking place: the activation of the portal that the looking glass was supposed to be.

"Stripped of your hero, however, you will find the task of directly confronting me much more arduous than it appears," it continued, grabbing the sword by the blade and proceeding towards the podium where the mirror rested. The reflection on the stone had strangely assumed depth, like a funnel. Just like with the previous projection, the rings that composed this copy rotated. Their center was a single, triangular piece.

"That mark… it cannot be…" the Sage of Light managed to utter. The demon chose to simply ignore him. It waited with a satisfied smirk as the tug of the portal began to affect his legs.

"Your land has changed much since I last blessed it with my power. To think that imbuing the simple thought of owning one of the most powerful artifacts of all time would spawn an entire era of chaos… You have all done me proud. Perhaps, upon my return, I will grant you that honor again."

The demon stretched out its arms to their full span. As if owner of a mind of its own, the mirror's brightness became equal to that of a thousand suns, and the demon's body began to dissolve into countless fragment as dark as the moonless night sky. These were drawn into the portal, flying against the wind's will.

Behind echoed its final words of farewell. When the sages finally grasped the gravity of the situation and their minds caught up to the incident, any trace of light abandoned the mirror, and the portal was no more.

Ganondorf was gone from Hyrule.

* * *

"Are you completely sure of what you saw?"

It felt like it had been the millionth time that the mare had placed that question. No matter the answer the guard gave her, she _insisted_ on asking it time and again. Breathing a long, deep sigh, the guard looked at her over his shoulder and summoned whatever politeness he had left. Hopefully it would clear the mare's doubts once and for all:

"Miss Sparkle, we have the creature _locked up_ and incapacitated. I'm fairly certain we had enough time to look at it and describe it properly." The mare was about to pose yet another question, but the violence in the guard's abrupt shout left it to die in her throat. "WE'RE HERE."

Ears pinned against her head and eyes fixed on the bulkier pony, the purple mare trotted forth. She carefully approached the wooden door of the dungeon chamber, as if the creature within would suddenly leap at her from within the darkness of the cell.

What met her eyes, however, was not a violent creature at all. Perhaps it was because it lay cold on the rocky ground, arms and legs splayed in random directions. Maybe even the way its mouth opened and closed rhythmically in its slumber. Whatever the reason, nothing about the thing inside told she should be afraid. The closest approximation she could give of it was that of a perfectly shaved Diamond Dog, albeit much, _much_ smaller and even less muscled – let alone threatening. Dirty, green cloth adorned its whole body, a pointy hat of the same color over its head, a pair of belts holding the clothing in place.

"Are you sure that thing was about to attack you?" she asked, a certain hint of scorn rather patent in her words. The guard didn't appear to take the subliminal message very well, as his previously passive expression quickly shifted to a frown.

"If you had read the briefing properly while we were in the chariot," he brusquely replied, not willing to pass on an opportunity to bash the mare for her persistence. "Then you would have known that it was armed. A rather sharp sword, at that; I've only seen few like it."

"Well I _did_ read the briefing, but I still don't see how _that_ can be a threat to anyone. Even with a weapon. _Especially_ a sword," her retort carried just as much hostility as the stallion's, something she realized too late but immediately tried to remedy by lowering her voice and looking away. "Whatever it is, it can't be much older than a school-age foal. How would something that young go around with a weapon like that?"

"Reports from witnesses established that it came from the former entrance to the Canterlot Mines, which opens up near the city's main plaza."

_The Canterlot Mines…_

Memories of her brother's wedding the previous year assaulted her mind. Her stay in those abandoned caves had been far from a good one. Her only salvation had been an auxiliary exit to the castle dungeons.

"Is there any other entrance?"

"None. This one's been blocked for several years now, and it's the first time _anything_'s come out of it," the guard added.

Chewing on the information for a moment, she continued to watch the creature in its sleep.

_Green clothes… a creature stranger than anything ever seen in Equestria… Where have I heard of you before…_

"I would like to see it up close," she suddenly spoke, catching the guard completely by surprise.

"In there? _You_ want to go _in there_?" his words dripped with ridicule, prompting a mixture of determination and anger to take over the mare's brow. They stood there for a moment, apparently an attempt from the guard to break the librarian, only to find that it was a lost battle.

The Princess's protégé's stubbornness was rather widespread among the higher ranks, if the constant hitch-hikes aboard a chariot to Canterlot were any indication. A groan was his sign of resignation. A pair of keys floated from the side of his armor to the front of his face. The crimson glow that enveloped the keys was immediately replaced with a purple one, and with a quick thanks, the mare plugged the key in the lock.

"I will wait here. If it tries anything funny, it gets a beating," he remarked while stomping his hoof, causing the creature in the prison to twitch slightly.

Twilight gave him a sheepish smile. "Ha ha… ha… I don't think that will be necessary, sir. With all due respect, of course," she laughed uneasily, pushing the door open with a hoof and moving inside. "I, huh, won't take long!"

Finally in the silence of the putrid stone cubicle, Twilight Sparkle made her relief clear with a sigh. Royal Guards (save for her brother that is) had never been easy to deal with. At least one or two of her friends could vouch for that, and it hadn't changed in the least before and after she was in Canterlot.

Her train of thought was then interrupted by the soft snoring of the creature. The first thing she took notice of was the chain attached to its right leg, giving it minimum mobility thanks to its short length.

_A necessary means of security, I suppose,_ she thought, crossing that mystery off the list.

There didn't seem to be anything about this creature that particularly caught her attention. The only possible exception was the almost unbearable feeling that _green_ was the only color she should be recognizing.

The report had mentioned how confused the creature had seemed upon arriving, having appeared to look around frenetically before engaging in combat with the guards after harassing civilians. Her mind began to drift into thought, the veracity of the report suddenly turning dubious. Suspicions regarding this creature's ability to fight still pestered her, and she had severe doubts that it would simply cause a mess for no reason.

_Maybe I just need to see it while it's awake… I think I know where to find the information I need about this. At least it'll keep me busy meanwhile._

She hazarded a movement, approaching her hoof to its head to gently move the fringe of golden hair aside. The pair of tightly shut eyes underneath seemed to have longed for sleep. She would know – spending entire nights with her sight set on elaborate texts had eventually done a number on her appearance. The bags under her eyes were the proof.

Twilight actually felt a pang of sympathy for the creature. It had obviously been journeying for a long time. _You poor thing… what have you endured..._

An instant of further examination later, she got up and left, casting one last quizzical gaze at the sleeping being. The guard's little smile wasn't there anymore when she turned to him with her most serious expression.

"I want to know immediately when it wakes up," she spoke noncommittally, closing the door behind her with a simple whisk of her magic. The guard gave a quick salutation and watched the mare leave.

In her mind, Twilight was banging her head against a wall. Something had clicked when she set her eyes on the alien creature. The green clothing. A beast unlike anything Equestria had ever seen.

It was in her nature to look into it. Her curiosity motivated her to beeline towards the Canterlot Castle's library. Books had always provided the answer she sought. There was no reason for them to not do so now.

But there was something else. Her drive wasn't based solely upon curiosity. The fact that this could be _destiny_ nagged her to no end.

She stepped up her pace. She would either get to the bottom of it, or die trying.


	3. Companions

Twilight sighed.

A yearning to return to the Golden Oaks Library was beginning to develop in the young mare's mind. Though the Canterlot archives were considered one of the most complete archives in the world, the sheer vastness of a single wing, coupled with the vagueness of the information she sought, reminded her of just how small and familiar her little Ponyville library was. The stack of books she'd already skimmed over grew at a steady pace, most of considerable thickness, and still she didn't find herself any closer to discovering the origin of the phrase that echoed in her thoughts.

'_…wearing the green of hope, a creature stranger than anything ever seen in Equestria…'_

Another book flew to the top of the pile, another tired sigh escaped her lips. The flame of the candle that had kept her company throughout the evening was ebbing, allowing the darkness that was characteristic to the wing to slowly settle in. She could only hope that the guard would arrive to tell her that the creature had woken up. She risked falling asleep over a book if he didn't do so soon.

Another book flew towards her. The glow that encased it faded abruptly, and it fell on the table with a loud thump that was sure to keep the mare awake for just a little longer.

She had almost completely exhausted two entire shelves of the rather lengthy Mythology Section, but her results had always been related to extremely old legends long ago proven wrong by all sorts of researchers (sometimes twice). This new book would most likely be another one of those – but precision in her research commanded that she read it anyway.

"[i]Sky Book…[/i] Maybe the pegasi have information about it…" she mumbled to herself, the long yawn she had been suppressing finally making its way out of her mouth.

Wiping the resulting tears from her eyes with a hoof, she unlocked the book, but stopped to observe the cover. It was much unlike most of the books she'd read there so far: upon it were etched a circle and a couple of crescent moons of escalating size surrounding each other as if the first figure emitted waves towards the top of the cover.

She ran her free hoof over the design, temporarily engrossed in its elaborateness, before cracking it open and marveling at the discovery: the characters she saw written on the aged pages were not in Equestrian – no, they were a complicated arrangement of odd figures that seemingly made no sense unless they were together. A language she'd never seen in any of the books that composed the records.

Schematics of a gigantic machine – or so it seemed, scaled as it was with the creature beside it – were drawn on several of the pages, its shape resembling a legged cannon, depicting several of its motions and positions. It walked on its own!

"Could it be… they were getting ready for a war?" the mare softly muttered. Exhaustion was instantly replaced by the enthusiasm of discovery. "These blueprints… they don't seem to include a trigger anywhere…"

Much to her delight and simultaneous sadness, the incomprehensible scribbling ended abruptly in the page that followed the last of the blueprints. An archaic form of the Equestrian language now filled entire pages. Clapping her hooves in joy, she began to turn the pages, briefly scanning the contents of one page before hurriedly getting to the next. For now, she was focused on finding a single mention of the words she wanted.

And surely enough, there it was, black on white, in the delicate writing of the book's author:

"'…_a boy clothed in green appeared as if from nowhere_.' A… boy?" she repeated, quickly going back a few words to find the beginning of the sentence.

She immediately regretted doing so. The singular combination of the dreadful words she found, combined with the unexpected creaking of the chamber doors, startled her out of her mind.

The world grew blurry for the faintest moment. Her own whispers comforted her enough to coax panic away. It was the familiar voice of the dungeon guard that brought the stallion at the end of the room back into focus.

"Ah… hum…" she mumbled, still slightly stunned. "Would you mind repeating that, please?"

"The creature is conscious, Miss Sparkle."

The book fell to the ground, spared from the invisible grip of magic. But it was too late. The words that were written on its pages had already been burned into her memory.

'_But then, when all hope had died, and the hour of doom seemed at hand_…' the words spelled...

* * *

Link's head ached, as it had the entirety of the time he'd spent lying there, wherever that place was. In the distance, a drop of water fell on a little pond. The resulting '[i]ping[/i]' resonated in his sharp ears like a hammer banging on metal, prompting him to shake his head as though it would drive the painful sound away.

He knew two things for sure; he was locked up, and the intense stench of the dead was almost palpable in every corner of that chamber. Scratch that, it was literally palpable. From where he lied, he could see the wooden door with three simple iron bars halfway up that sealed him in that cell. Beyond those, he could see the faint glimmer of a torch, casting an unrecognizable shadow on the rocky walls.

Mounds of hay were randomly scattered throughout the compartment, little of which within his reach, much to his annoyance, and even less cushioning the back of his head.

Rocks had never provided a good pillow. Having spent several nights sleeping in the verdant Hyrule fields or secluded from the fiery meteors that rained down from Death Mountain, Link knew that there was a clear difference between red earth and fertile earth in terms of comfort.

He clearly remembered the Gerudo Fortress's cells, and how uninhabitable that place in the desert had been. The Gerudo had designed it as if any prisoner that spent a single night there would be dead by sunrise, be it of starvation, thirst, or both. The gang of thieves was not exactly known for its hospitality. Taking those terrible women in account, questions regarding these beings' way of taking care of their guests began to arise.

Tired of lying down, he sat and stretched his arms and legs in an attempt to get rid of the numbness that ailed them. The sound of chains rustling called his attention to the cuffs around his right leg, and to the short chain that connected it to a spike on the ground.

_Great… and they took my sword too,_ he sourly remarked in his thoughts while a hand probed his back for the equipment, finding only the empty belts.

"Psst." Furrowing his brow, he took a careful look around the ward, stopping at the little barred window behind him. Amidst the silver radiance of the moon was tiny green dot that gently fluttered in front of the grating. It didn't take long for Link to remember who this was, and the epiphany was explosive.

"YOU! GET IN HERE, COWARD! WHY DID YOU PRETEND TO BE HER?!"

"Look, I'm sorry, but you need to calm down or they'll hear you!" Much to his surprise, the emerald fairy's tone was apologetic (though just barely sincere), and a bit rushed as well. After their first and only encounter, he wouldn't have pegged her for the type that would be sorry for its actions, let alone show their face in front of their victims again.

Of course, none of that was enough to quell the beast she'd upset before.

"WELL THEY CAN COME IN IF THEY WANT! I WOULDN'T BE HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE IF **YOU** HADN'T TRICKED ME!"

"Hey! I had to, okay?! I had to do it to live, so there!"

"You had to do it to live?! [i]Who[/i] told you to do it?!"

"NOBODY! I'M A CHANGELING SPRITE, ALRIGHT?!"

"…what…" The boy's expression visibly softened, only to resume its heavy frown just seconds later. "And what's that to me?! You could be a Deku for all I care!"

"I [i]feed[/i] off [i]positive emotions[/i], [i]alright[/i]?" The fairy seemed suddenly angered. Her wings emitted a loud buzz. "It's… complicated… but I didn't mean you any harm! It was an accident!" Taking note of Link's invariably fuming look, she went silent, slowly backing away from him. "I don't expect you to understand… but I want to make it up to you."

"Make it up. Tsc. That's rich." The boy sat down, crossing his arms. "And just how'll you do that?"

"I'll help you get back to Hyrule. Then we can just go separate ways and you won't even have to see me again." Some pep returned to her speech as she approached him again. "I won't bother you anymore."

His face retained its initial passiveness, as if the fairy hadn't even spoken. She seemed to be making the ordeal of returning home – one he'd considered hard enough without even trying – so simple. So simple, in fact, that he couldn't help but be slightly annoyed.

But… it was his only hope. Better said, she was the only being he had met so far who was both aware of Hyrule and that he was Hylian. She was, at the same time, a curse and a blessing in this place.

And the fact that he had nobody else to ask for help only served to aggravate his frustration.

"…what's your plan?"

"Watch out, they're coming!" she spoke up all of a sudden, hiding behind the wall outside as the sound of hooves clacking on the dungeon floor began to reach them. The boy was about to shout for her, but her whisper somehow overpowered it: "Just do whatever the ponies say for now! As long as you don't make them mad, they won't hurt you!"

The fairy stopped for a moment, as if to carefully select her next words. "Trust me… I would know."

* * *

There was an unmistakable sense of anxiousness in the air once the heavy door slid open, dragging along the bigger mounds of hay that were close to it. Twilight stepped in.

Without even wanting to, the mare and the boy had engaged each other in a staring contest, where the first to break eye contact would be the first to talk. She could see his azure eyes flickering slightly in the dark like the stars in the nocturnal sky, his eyebrows curved down in a seemingly unbreakable determination. Had she not known any better, she would have said that he was a monster protecting its treasured loot. A cuffed monster, for that matter; one that she knew couldn't hurt him under the penalty of being harmed in return.

He seemed fairly aware of what she was capable of, and also of what she possessed: a horn, and magic. His eyes shifted nervously from hers to the horn on her forehead.

"H-Hello," she decided to speak, finally breaking the ineffable quietness and somewhat catching the creature off-guard. She was trying her best to sound innocent, maybe even friendly. "My name is Twilight Sparkle. Do you understand what I am saying?"

But no matter how slowly she spoke, the creature would simply stare open-mouthed at her, baffled and lost in confusion.

_Of course. It doesn't understand a thing._

She wasn't sure of what to do. The methods of communication were more likely than not different between their two kinds, and judging from the being's wide-eyed stare, it had never even seen something like her. The quote regarding a 'boy' clad in green continued to play in her mind like a broken record.

_I need to calm it down…_

Very carefully, she took a step forward, their gaze still intertwined so as to test each other's reactions. Taking its lack of a response of any kind as a sign of confirmation, she took another one, then another one. With each step she took, a soft, purple glow began to envelop her horn. Behind them, the clatter of hooves echoed in the tunnel, the steps appearing more distant and urgent with every passing moment.

It was when they were but centimeters apart that the creature began to pull its head back, certainly an attempt to look properly at her. But no – its eyes were set on her horn. It was _fear_. Whatever she was doing, she was provoking a befuddling terror on the young being.

"I'm not going to hurt you…" she decided to try a vocal approach on soothing it, but met only failure. As cautiously as possible, she tried to make up for the gap it had created, lowering her head as she did so. Her horn drew closer and closer to its forehead. Though it resisted for a moment, she could feel its breath against her mane.

"M-Miss Sparkle!" the guard barked from the entrance, completely breaking her concentration on the spell and putting her horn's glow out like a breeze to the flame of a candle. She unleashed a profuse sigh, lowering her head and just barely missing the creature's nose with her horn.

"This had better be good," she continued with a groan, frowning at the guard over her shoulder.

The moment she noticed the graveness of his expression was the moment it infected her with panic. It was no joke; something _serious_ had happened. It was the only possible justification for the guardspony to have fetched its weapons, and her mind raced with all the possibilities of things that could have gone wrong in the castle. Unfortunately, it was that single line in the book that resonated in all of them, the same disturbing legend that would otherwise have no meaning whatsoever. _The hour of doom_.

"W-What is it?"

"…Something is happening in the throne room."

* * *

The colorful banners of the Canterlot Castle Halls zoomed past Twilight as she galloped alongside the royal guardspony. The latter's armor pieces rattled on each other with every step they took. A heavy lance was splayed across his back.

The tower containing the throne room, the only tower that soared over Canterlot peak's massive chasm, was the farthest location they could hope to reach from the dungeons. Lost in a state of dizziness from exhaustion, Twilight tried to shun the feeling of impending disaster than continued to haunt her. Try though she might, there was an undeniable connection between the book, the boy and the problems she was about to face. The guardspony spared her of those thoughts when he came to a halt, consequently causing her to stop. They had arrived.

It was a scene to behold, the organization of the royal guard. Despite their captain's untimely absence, they still organized themselves as if someone was giving out the orders, setting their pace and mission and directing them to their inevitable deaths at the pitiless hands of whatever foe threatened Equestria this time.

_Ugh. This really happens too often,_ the mare realized before noting the circumstances and chuckling lightly to herself. There was no joy in that little giggle. Just a desperate attempt to convince herself that everything was fine.

"They're mobilizing most of the platoon!" The stallion beside her's weary talking snatched her back to reality. "Whatever's in there – it's gonna get ugly!"

The phrase 'getting ugly' was one Twilight had grown accustomed to. With a loud gulp, she tried to keep focused on the task. A large group of armored ponies was already rushing across the bridge that led to the throne room.

"Stay close to me, and whatever you do, you do it when _I_ say so, got that?" the stallion snarled. A quick nod from Twilight brought a smirk to his snout. "Alright then, let's get this over with."

Finally stepping on the marble arch bridge, the mare found herself in the middle of two organized rows of guards, all of which saluting the one that accompanied her. The former stopped as well at one point, gesturing likewise at another stallion. They exchanged formalities before handing out the information. They knew just as much: there was a threat in the Throne Room.

But perhaps there _was_ something that went unstated, and Twilight got to witness it first-hand when she peered discreetly from behind the larger pony. At the end of the bridge, where the largest, most finely decorated door of the castle stood high and proud, was none other than a group of obviously exhausted soldiers. They struggled to get it open in whatever way they could - conventionally or not. Their efforts were always fruitless. There was always a bright blue, translucent barrier that kept the, from succeeding.

A bright blue barrier.

_Magic_.

"I-I think I can get us in there," Twilight spoke up to the stallion. She was greeted by a mandatory frown, but allowed to continue. "If I can get close, I can probably break that barrier. It might be difficult without disrupting the source, but the least I can do is try!"

"You heard the little filly. You!" he spoke with unexpected swiftness, turning to the closest unit before beckoning at the barrier with his head. "Get her over there, stat!"

"Yes, sir!" the guard replied, hurriedly accompanying the mare through the organized rows before presenting her to the door.

Twilight took a deep breath and analyzed the barrier. There was powerful magic behind it, for sure. It was focused solely on the door, and exerted such strength that no simple counter spell would break it. She had a few ideas, and the only way to know if they would work was to try them.

"Step back, this might backfire…" Her horn lit up. "Certain force fields have this…"

She found her words harder and harder to mutter as the barrier became the focus of her magic. She had, in truth, done this perhaps once or twice. Most of the time, it was her barrier she was taking down, and not somepony else's, so destroying a spell she hadn't cast was no easy business.

And though she had seen a quite wide variety of protective spells in her life – or at least read about them, never had she encountered one like this. Not a sentient one. But _especially_ not one…

"_Hello, Twilight. It has been a while, has it not?_"

…with the voice of Nightmare Moon.

And just like that, the eruption of a blinding flash was followed by the darkness of the void, as if all light in the world had just been wasted on this one, incredible burst. She was conscious, however. The feeling of travelling at immensely high speeds – one not foreign to her – coursed through the entirety of her body and being.

She was being teleported.


	4. Clash

Teleportation always seemed to last an eternity for the pony being teleported. The 'tunnel' that had to be crossed in order to get from point A to point B was, as always, devoid of content. Just like Twilight remembered. In spite of that, she forced her eyes to shut as tightly as she could, as though an obfuscating light harassed them.

Her mind was conjuring all sorts of wicked scenarios. A looming disaster that would scar her for life. For Celestia to have been imprisoned in her own tower could only mean trouble, and the fact that Nightmare Moon's voice had greeted her only made the situation even worse.

The end of the funnel-shaped world of the void appeared, at long last, in the form of a light that crept from a breach in space itself. After this trip was over, she would have the opportunity to see just how powerful this old enemy was – and how _they_ would stand against it.

Try as she might, however, her eyelids would not break apart even after she felt a shiver cross her body, ruffling the fur of her coat. It was the telltale sign that the teleportation spell had ended. She had braced herself for a tortuous sight, maybe even to receive the first blow right off the bat.

But there were no screams of agony. Only a voice.

"Ah yes… your prized student…" It was a _male_ voice. It was deep, it was frightening, and above all, it was imposing. "Rise, Twilight Sparkle."

It was only upon the mention of her name that the mare realized she was crouching so as to keep her head close to the floor in subjugation. She scrambled to her hooves and averted her gaze from the rest of the chamber.

_Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay_... she prayed. Silence continued even after a moment of waiting. No shrieks of pain were heard. No ragged breaths or the sound of blood splattering against the walls. Twilight gathered her courage and slowly turned forward.

Princess Celestia sat on the throne, bearing an unusually grave look. She held her head high as she gazed down at the creature that kneeled at the throne's feet. One of its hands hand rested on its chest in what appeared to be a demonstration of humbleness.

When the creature rose in accordance to her, Twilight was impressed. It wasn't the fact that it was so similar to the prisoner in the dungeons that impressed her though. It was how different it was at the same time. Where the one they held captive had a 'natural' skin color, this one's skin was tainted a dark shade of sickly green. The former's bright yellow 'mane' was instead a carefully combed mesh of blood-colored hair in the latter, kept in place by a complex, golden headgear that vaguely resembled a crown.

A sinister cape of red tones adorned his back, covering much of his long bleak robe. An insignia, colored crimson like the stripes that decorated the cloak here and there, embellished its back. The end of a clearly improvised scabbard stuck out from the garment, as though it was a warning.

_You do not want to meddle in my plans,_ it seemed to say.

"The Princess and I were simply negotiating," he continued. He was incredibly tall, perhaps about as tall as Celestia herself. An uncontrollable quake shook her being when his eyes settled upon the young mare's. There was an indescribable sense of malevolence swirling about in those tiny rubies, in the wicked, maybe even derisive smirk he sported.

"P-Princess… Who is this…" the unicorn somehow found the strength to utter, quickly alternating between Celestia and the ominous being.

"You may call me Ganondorf," he answered, giving Twilight a much more discreet bow.

She took a step forward, but Celestia intervened. "Stay back, Twilight Sparkle!"

"I would heed the Princess's advice. This is business for grown-ups."

"You will speak when spoken to, _Hylian_," the Princess was quick to hiss, stomping a hoof to further prove her point. Her voice was raised to a volume Twilight hadn't seen her use in a long time. "I will have none of your impertinence in my presence!"

_Hylian_? the unicorn wondered, tilting her head.

"As you wish, _Princess_. However," The creature seemed to have conceded for a short time, bowing so imperceptibly that she would have missed it if she had blinked. Ganondorf's little smile suddenly became a heavy frown. "I will remind you that you lack the necessary connection to the Elements to face me."

"Is that a threat, Hylian?" Celestia's wings unfurled in a rapid movement. Her horn blazed, distorting the air around it, such was the might of whatever spell she was concocting.

_Heat. Intense one_, Twilight thought from her place.

"Certainly not. Perish the thought of threatening the guardian of the Sun."

There it was. The sarcasm that dripped from his voice and tugged at the Equestrians' patience. Apparently unaffected by this irreverent behavior, the Princess simply raised an eyebrow and coughed politely. "State your terms, Hylian, and begone from Equestria."

"Ah, yes. It is rather fortunate that your student happened to stumble upon us. It will make this much quicker, you will see." The 'Hylian' looked back at the unicorn, flashed a toothy grin for a split second and then continued. "Surrender the Elements of Harmony, and your land shall be spared."

Twilight's heart stopped at that moment, when the conviction in the individual's request stilled the air around them. There was silence. The Princess was unquestionably looking for the best way to solve this, as she cast a wide-eyed gape at Ganondorf, who returned an ever growing smile and…

…and prompted a laugh from the princess. The most sarcastic, unladylike, most out-of-context _guffaw_ burst from the regal alicorn.

"Surely, you jest!" she spoke between gasps for air. "Hylian! Why would I surrender the Elements of Harmony to a being such as you?!"

Ganondorf shook his head while clucking his tongue. With a sudden flick of his hand, Twilight was whisked into the air and pinned against the nearest wall by magic. She struggled to move, even summoning her own magical prowess to break free, but Ganondorf's grasp was too strong. Celestia's laughter ceased immediately. A choked gasp was the only reaction she mustered.

"I am disappointed to find that a person such as you would be so _rude_," Ganondorf muttered darkly, stepping towards the throne. "But I am even more disappointed that you haven't fully understood the extent of my power."

"P-Princess! Why won't you do something?!" Twilight managed to shout before her head was again locked in place by the invisible hands of magic.

"HYLIAN! You shall release my student or suffer the wrath of the sun!"

"Now, now, Celestia…" The concern that was beginning to grow in the back of Twilight's mind made up for the lack thereof in the Hylian's visage. Completely ignoring Celestia's warnings, he continued to walk, already pointing his free hand at the monarch. A deep violet aura enveloped the gloved limb, as if it had been set ablaze. "Let us avoid any unnecessary scuffle. One of the Elements is already present, after all."

"I shall never surrender any of my subjects to the likes of you, Hylian!"

"That is a pity," was all he said before unleashing a war cry and skidding across the floor with his arm pulled back, ready to strike. With a beat of her strong wings, the Princess took to the air, skillfully avoiding the man's assault. The very ground shook when his fist struck the throne, effectively shattering the gilded chair into pieces.

Taking the moment of inaction in her favor, she prepared to launch a spell. Ganondorf just smiled at the glow that encased her horn. "I would not do that, Celestia."

He motioned towards Twilight with his head. Once Celestia followed his hint, he flicked his hand downwards, and Twilight found herself crashing headfirst against the ground. Celestia cancelled her attack, not willing to test her fiend's abilities.

"Now, there are two ways we can solve our little predicament," Ganondorf continued. "First, you will willingly give me the Elements of Harmony." With a gesture, Twilight began to float once more. The unicorn struggled to breathe. The throne room appeared blurry to her eyes, and a throbbing pain in the back of her head muddled her thoughts.

"Or…" Another quick movement ended with the back of his left palm facing the princess. "I will _force you_ to give me the Elements of Harmony."

"Your magic is nothing, Hylian! Your kind has but a mere fraction of what Hylia spared!"

"Oh? I beg to disagree… _your Majesty_." As though it had been planned, the back of its hand shone with unforeseen brightness. In the place of the bare, worn off glove was one of the few things the alicorn feared to see.

A golden, triangular mark.

"You… the T-Triforce…" she wavered, much like the rhythm of her wings. The mere presence of that symbol appeared to weaken her resolve. The man was rather pleased by this, if the ear-to-ear smirk he bore was any indication. Even Twilight could feel the desperation that harassed the ruler's judgment. It was just like the book had said. Exactly like it. There was no doubt about it now.

And even so, it was too late to remedy the situation.

"You are a fast learner, Celestia."

Numerous plans emerged from the blank slate that was Twilight's mind. She considered all of the ways that she could use to escape this fiend's grasp and somehow reach the Hylian that was locked up in the dungeons. All the paths she could take to reach out to the guards and alert them of the impending catastrophe should the prisoner not be released.

Oblivious to her musings, Ganondorf unsheathed his sword and stepped forth. "Now then… Would you hear my desire?" Celestia didn't offer an answer. "To take this foul blade…"

Twilight tried to avert her eyes. The man's spell didn't allow her. _Please do something..._

"And use it to blot out your light… **forever**!"

As the sword whistled through the air towards the alicorn's head, time seemed to slow down to an infinitesimal rate.

The creature's malicious eyes locked upon Celestia's. They hungered for bloodshed and power while the pony yearned only for peace and hope to propagate. To ensure the safety of her subjects, and the continuation of Harmony in her land. To destroy light itself… she could think of only one entity who could wish that.

"NEVER!"

Bellowing a roar so powerful it shook even the very core of the foe, horn met blade with a sickening crunch. A duel of honor and demonstration of raw strength began as each struggled to subdue their adversary with their weapon of choice.

"You will never have your way, Nightmare Moon!"

"Then why not allow me demonstrate it?" That had clearly not been Ganondorf. Another spoke through his mouth.

Lost in confusion for the briefest second, Celestia quickly understood what the Hylian meant. Her student's hooves suddenly shot up to clench her throat. It was a desperate attempt to do away with the unseen force that threatened to crush it.

"Yes… why not let me show you just how your rule ends…" The unicorn's gagging motion became more vicious; time was running out. "And how _eternal night_ takes over Equestria!"

_She must be saved._

With the dexterity of a trained warrior, the alicorn swept away the sword. There was barely had time for Celestia to turn around, and yet she managed to land two bone-shattering kicks on the creature's stomach.

Ganondorf reeled back in pain, offering her the precious time she needed to teleport across the throne room. With the man's focus weakened, Twilight plummeted to the ground. It was the accuracy of Celestia's magic that kept the unicorn from hitting the floor.

Twilight was only just conscious when her tutor brought her close for an affectionate nuzzle. That fleeting moment where Celestia wrapped her forelegs around Twilight's weakened body felt like a lifetime.

_In this hour of need, I gift you the remainders of my power._ Though Twilight could not hear Celestia's voice, these thoughts did not need vocalization. The alicorn could feel the fire of appreciation burning in her student. She smiled, but only because of Twilight's pleas. Twilight was begging her to stop so that she did not do this, to herself and her apprentice, and all of Equestria. She could not disappear.

_What will we do if you're gone?_

_You will finish what I could not._

Feeling that the last she could spare had been given away, Celestia released her student. Her magic gently guided Twilight's body to safety.

_Though they struggle to obliterate the light, it is the force that each of you carries within that will shine when all hope has died._

Adjusting her eyes to the bright new light in front of her, Twilight saw the faint outline of her tutor grow further and further away. Celestia's kind voice was being overpowered by the maniacal howls of a crazed beast.

_Why are you sending me away… I want to help you…_

_Find me._

* * *

"All units, fallback! I repeat, GET. AWAY. NOW!"

"Sir!" The tired voice of a lightly armored stallion called the captain's attention to his underling. "Princess Luna's quarters are empty, sir! She is nowhere to be found!"

"Blast it all!"

Another quake attacked the bridge, its foundations beginning to crack under the continuous assaults of the past few minutes. The captain looked around nervously. The weak points of the overpass were marked on the marble stone by large cracks. If Twilight's prolonged and sudden absence had annoyed him, then the most recent breakthroughs had definitely reduced his serenity to zero.

So it was, of course, a reason for joy when the same explosion of light that had taken the mare away happened again in the exact same spot, this time to return the Element of Magic to their care. The time to escape the collapsing bridge was running short, however. They had to take her out of there.

"Sweet Celestia, what are you waiting for?!" the captain yelled to whoever had already taken shelter outside the bridge. "Go get her!"

The bewilderment in the guards' faces was enough indication that if you want something done, you will have to do it yourself.

Which is precisely what the captain did.

Cautiously approaching the unstable bridge and setting off with a quick gallop, he reached the nauseous mare just in time to avoid the crumbling of their end of the bridge.

He flicked her over his back with a jolt of telekinesis. There was no time to grunt a complaint about the added weight, for the ground beneath his hooves collapsed not instants later. Not willing to be defeated by such an environmental hazard, his brow furrowed in determination.

Adrenaline coursed in his veins as he avoided the traps that previous tremors had set up for him. As a royal guard, he was well used to this sort of hurdle dash. It had been part of the admission exam, and he had passed it brilliantly. He was not about to let his superiors down.

The last stretch was nothing out of the ordinary, and having found he had covered a lot of ground in comparison with the rate at which the bridge fell, the captain allowed himself to briefly relax. Before long, he was back among his subordinates, and Twilight Sparkle was finally off his back and in the safety of their hooves.

A look back revealed that there was now a broad gap separating them from the highest tower in the castle. He gulped as he saw the illuminated windows well above them. He pondered on whether or not he wanted to know what sort of cataclysmic battle was taking place beyond those walls.

Curiosity won.

"Miss Sparkle, what the hay is going on in there?" He allowed the informality. If anything, cordiality was unnecessary towards her.

The mare seemed responsive enough, if not somewhat dazed as well. Shoving aside the guards that kept her standing, Twilight held a hoof to her head, rubbing it lightly so that the blurriness that troubled her perception could disappear.

"I… I'm not sure. I-I think… Nightmare Moon…" The mere mention of the name had the platoon's fur stand on end. "There's something else with her though. Something… something the Princess was afraid of…"

"A-Are you sure of what you're saying, Miss Sparkle?!"

"I know what I saw, captain! That… thing… it almost killed the Princess!" Her gaze wandered over to the unreachable door across the breach. She felt a tear creeping its way up to her eye. "And now… now we can't help her."

A wave of chatter took over the legion around her. Their leader stood frozen on his spot. Had Equestria fallen to the clutches of chaos in his watch? If the Princess herself hadn't been able to do anything, then what help would a bunch of guardsponies be?

"But there's hope," Twilight continued in a hushed voice. "I-If the legend is true… then there's one that can helps us."

* * *

Link's patience was thinning, much like his trust on the fairy. She'd been away for the better part of the time since the ponies left, having promised to 'get his sword and help him out of there'.

The _impossibility_ of said agreement only got to him after she was gone. Now he lay there, helpless and alone, hands pillowing his head in the inevitable wait for the sprite.

Olivia. That was her name. Link felt like he could relate its meaning to its owner.

_An entire realm filled with ponies,_ he echoed in his mind, remembering the fairy's words. _I suppose Princess Celestia is their Princess Zelda. I'd know about how that works._

_I suppose I would._

He suddenly became aware of the weight of his pocket. The instrument his princess had awarded him remained there. The ponies had apparently assumed that there was no risk if he kept it.

_Oh, if they knew what I can do with this..._ he smiled inwardly, recalling his previous experiences with the Ocarina of Time. With it he had summoned storms and turned day into night, and night into day. Perhaps that was information better kept away from the minds of the equines, however.

"Link! Link!" His musings were interrupted by the call of his name. The humming of the fairy's wings resonated across the tunnels. The sound of her voice had never been so welcome before. Instantly sitting up, the boy found Olivia flying through the door's grating. With no sword or shield. "I found your sword! And your shield, too! They're just around the corner, at the end of this first tunnel!"

"You know it won't help me at all if I don't have them!" he quickly retorted, falling to the ground on his back again.

"I know, I know! But there's something else!" Indeed, her excitement did let out that she had found something interesting. It had caught the Hylian's interest as well. Trying his best to remain good-natured, he sat up again, allowing her to continue. "I remembered the spell!"

Had the source been someone else, Link's eyebrow wouldn't have raised that moment.

"Wait… what… spell?"

"The one I need to make you understand them!"

_There's a bit of Navi in her, that's for sure…_

"Although… well, for it to work… I'm gonna have to be by your side all the time AND I know you don't like that very much. If I had an alternative, I'd go with it, but I don't, so there."

"Hum… Okay but!" The fairy would have tackled him just then had he not spoken up. "Why do you have to…"

"It's complicat-"

"Sounds more like you make it complicated. Try me."

If Olivia had a face, she would be frowning.

"Alright, farm boy. The spell connects your mind to mine and no I won't be reading your thoughts." Link lowered his hand and closed his mouth. "But as long as I understand what the words mean, then you, too, will understand. Words are just… ways… of expressing concepts. Ours will be a unified language. It's like sharing… feelings. Changelings… have those…"

They shared a moment of silence. The boy's face bore an unreadable expression.

"Okay," he simply replied. "I get it."

"Wow, real-I mean, huh, of course you did." The familiar clops they had heard earlier began to reverberate in the tunnels once more, for some reason putting the fairy on full alert. "Buck, they're coming! Stand still!"

Olivia fluttered closer to him, almost forcing the boy to cross his eyes in order to see her at all. The green tones of her body became clearer and clearer, and eventually, the entirety of the fairy was white, a soft glow that Link found rather nostalgic. There was a flash and then…

"OW!" he complained as soon as the fairy flew off his forehead, the impact having thrown the boy off his feet and onto a sitting position. "Was that really necessary?!"

"Well excuse me if I don't have a horn to cast spells," she snapped back, digging her way through his hair and into his hat. "I'm gonna stay in here for now! If they find me, I'm done for!"

"He's in here!" That voice was new. It was definitely a female, and it accompanied the crescent sound of hooves on stone. Standing up again, he could see, through the gratings, that someone was approaching his cell. A pony, maybe two, given the amount of clops he heard was headed his way.

Sure enough, the door flew open just instants later, and in came the familiar purple unicorn, closely followed by yet another unicorn – this one heavily armored. What caught his attention was what the latter held in the air through the use of magic: the Kokiri Sword and the Hero's Shield. His belongings.

Something had changed, however. While the mare had seemed curious about him in their previous encounter, everything about her now suggested exhaustion. Her breaths were long and ragged, just like the guard's, and in the lavender pools of her eyes burned only one flame: the flame of courage. As the holder of the Triforce of Courage, Link had some experience in that field.

A rusty little key floated to his leg, where it was used to unlock the cuff. Once free from his binds, equipment fell to the floor before him. As he eagerly picked his gear up, he heard the female pony talk again. He was sure he still could not understand those words, but the feeling they conveyed was all he needed in order to comprehend the message within.

"We need you."


	5. Exodus

For a fleeting moment, Link imagined that he was back in Hyrule. He was sitting on Epona's saddle, and was heading to Hyrule Castle. A sealed letter was sticking out of his belt, holding inside a request from Princess Zelda to meet her as soon as possible. Hair windswept and eyes set on the approaching castle town, Link had the singular worry of not getting there fast enough. Without a madman to threaten Hyrule or monsters roaming the verdant fields of the kingdom, the never-ending scoldings the princess gave about tardiness were his only enemy.

A cry from below fished him back to reality. He didn't like this reality. He wasn't riding Epona, nor was he in Hyrule. His steed was a heavily armored stallion, a captain of the guard, no less, and the walls that surrounded him weren't Hyrule Castle's. He was riding at a princess's request, to be sure - just not the princess he would have preferred. The feeling wasn't the same, no matter how much danger he was in.

"Get your head in the game, boy!" the stallion was shouting. "You're lucky Miss Sparkle has that much confidence in you!"

"Sir!" the voice of another soldier called from a perpendicular corridor. Link's steed firmly dug his hooves into the ground to stop, an action that was almost abrupt enough to whisk the boy out of his seat. Right on cue, another tremor shook the hallway, and though the ponies stood firm, the soldier could barely be heard over the rumbling. "The remaining Elements of Harmony are on their way to Canterlot!"

"NO!" Twilight's sudden burst startled ponies and human alike momentarily. The mare mouthed a sheepish apology, which didn't save her from receiving a stern glare from the captain. "I mean, huh, send them back! That's exactly what that thing in there wants!"

The captain ruminated on the proposal for a brief moment. "How close are they?"

"T-Minus fifteen minutes, sir."

The stallion harrumphed. "Point of no return then. There's no station between there and Canterlot for them to turn around."

"Stop the train then! Call a chariot down and take them back to Ponyville!"

"Miss, one does not simply _stop_ a train that is following a schedule," the captain stated matter-of-factly. "My best guess is that they're about to enter the Canterlot mountain tunnels. Just getting a message in there would take enough time for them to cross the mountain and arrive in Canterlot."

"But-"

"My decision is final! My highest priority right now is to get _you_ out of the castle. Order the immediate evacuation of all guards! And for Celestia's sake, make sure somepony, _anypony_, finds the night shift squad and tells me _why_ they aren't here yet!" Responding with a salute, the guard ran off. "This is very strange. The Night Guards are never late for their duty. Princess Luna so demands."

"But she's not here either, right?" Twilight asked. The captain shook his head, confirming what the mare already knew. Looking up at the 'Hylian', she was reminded of the task at hoof: escape. "We need to go. There's something I still need to do."

* * *

"The Canterlot Archives?" the captain barked as soon as Twilight skid to a stop. "Miss Sparkle, I seriously doubt this is the appropriate time for reading!"

With the loudest groan either warrior had ever heard, the purple unicorn lit her horn up and magically pried the repository's heavy door open. A nauseous scent of dust slipped out of the room, as if nobody had opened that door for at least a thousand years. Link and the captain had been frozen in place, but the mare paid it no mind at all.

"The book I need is what led me to him in the first place," she spoke rather nonchalantly, trotting in. Link and his steed shared a confused look before following her inside.

If a mere whiff of the breeze outside had been enough to cause nausea, then the asphyxiating odor that populated the archives' atmosphere was certainly intense enough to rouse the dead from their eternal slumber.

Despite the less-than-agreeable atmosphere, the captain looked around in awe, contemplating on whether the higher ranking guards were able to see places like this on their shifts. He had always been placed in front of doors or just assigned to rounds on the courtyard - the life of the lowly guard he had been better part of his career in a nutshell. Never had he been assigned to a place in the castle halls proper, and much less on the mythical Canterlot archives so few had access to (or so the rumor went).

It was, therefore, with great astonishment that he found that particular section of the castle to be everything he expected. It was a place of immeasurable length with just as uncountable a number of shelves, upon which were carefully lined books of all sizes, colors, and even state of conservation.

Several wooden tables, where towering piles of books rested, were randomly strewn amidst this maze of wood, stone and knowledge. If they were able to see anything, it was thanks to the natural light provided by the moon. The ceiling was an enormous glass dome, allowing the light from above to bathe the wing. The resulting baby blue tone granted the whole place a much more mystical ambiance.

Immense though the place may have appeared, Twilight had traversed it with relative ease, maybe even with a hint of thrill, disappearing behind columns of bookshelves soon after.

"Okay, hop off. You're getting too heavy," the captain grunted with a shake of its flank, motioning Link to climb down. The boy complied, and a long sigh of sincere relief escaped the guard. "So… you know how to use a sword?"

Casting a quick glance at the sword on his scabbard, Link nodded back, eliciting a gentle chuckle from the equine. The latter's lance levitated from the hold on his side before falling next to him, where it was kept standing by a hoof.

"So you really can understand me. Heh. Now there's something I'd like to see… you look pretty young to, you know… wield a sword? Hey, no need to get angry," he quickly mended as the swordsman's expression contorted into a frown. "We just… don't get many like you around here. Usually, all the colts just want to join stuff like 'The Wonderbolts' or run around and start some business. Don't get me wrong, I'm fine with that. But… the Royal Guard doesn't get much attention anymore."

The stallion quieted, his gaze apparently fixated on the moon above. Now with a place to sit down, the boy just watched, listening to the murmur of Twilight's hooves in the back of the archives as she moved around. He felt Olivia's wings nudge his hair inside the hat, the familiar sensation of a fairy spirit's natural warmth all but unwelcome to him.

_I almost bet she doesn't mind it either._

His gaze finally settled on the spear to admire the detailed work on its azure handle and polished tip of gold, sharper than the best of arrows. Designs of a couple of winged equines spiraled up the handle, with depictions of the moon and the sun decorating the remaining space. It awakened within him a certain curiosity, the will to know more.

Granted, he wanted to ask things – questions regarding his location, regarding the ponies he was now 'forced' to follow and cooperate with, about the land and its sovereigns. Doubts that he didn't think would torment him now begged to be solved, right there and then, in the few moments of simultaneous peace and company he'd had since his arrival to this realm.

And yet, he couldn't speak their language.

"Name's Shiro, by the way," as if reading his mind, the captain's voice broke the silence. Link's head rose, finding that the pony's were still set on the celestial body in the skies. "That's the nickname the rest of the guards give me, anyway. They say it has the same meaning and that it's shorter. Heh. What language was it now? Canternese?"

"Captain White Castle!" Twilight's voice echoed across the archives. "Would you mind bringing the Hylian here?"

"That's our cue. Come on. We can 'talk' later," Shiro added with a wink, walking past the boy while the lance returned to its rightful position.

_Wish they could know my name. 'The Hylian' doesn't sound nice._

The pair found the unicorn in the center of an authentic fortress of books. Surrounded by stacks of tomes, she was fervently skimming over entire volumes while one in particular floated by her side, always open in the same page. On either side of the hall were shelves, these devoid of any content. A golden label at the highest shelf read '[i]Mythology of Equestria[/i]'.

"M-Miss Sparkle, did you really…"

"Read all these? No. Well, not now. I have copies of several back in Ponyville, so I skipped some." But the captain continued to look flabbergasted.

The literal walls of text heightened at a fast pace. One last manuscript flew to the top of the heap before she took notice of the swordsman, beaconing towards the center of the 'fort' with a free hoof.

No words were exchanged for several seconds – an eternity for both males. Twilight continuously looked to and from the pages of the book, the gap her mouth created growing with every couple of gazes.

"There… there are no doubts left…" the mare muttered, raising her head for what they hoped was the last time. Not even looking at it, the book flew towards Shiro. With the book safely embraced by his magic, Twilight stepped forward, a leg shakily approaching Link's left hand. "You're the one of whom the legends of your world speak. But... we've never met any of your kind..."

"Hush," Shiro suddenly commanded, much to their surprise. The book had been slammed close, floating back to Twilight's side. He surveyed the area, raising the lance. There was an unnerving stillness as they tried to follow his gaze, which somehow always ended up directed straight up.

_Crack._

At the dome.

_Crack._

"**INCOMING**!" No sooner did the momentous holler reach their ears than the ceiling shattered into millions of glass shards that rained down upon them. The frigid gale that cradled them swept away the tomes on the ground and shoved the gargantuan bookshelves in all sorts of directions.

While Twilight had taken cover on the ground by covering her head with her forelegs, Link had jumped to her side and hoisted his shield above their heads. The piece of armor successfully guarded both from the downpour, a feat that genuinely impressed the stallion. He couldn't admire the boy's skills for long, as avoiding injuries in the labyrinth of collapsing walls kept him busy.

A thick haze descended upon them, and one by one, the fine stained glass portraits on the walls all around burst into fragments, further supplying the already dim library with another layer of smoke. Encased in mist, the three occupants of the library moved together. They couldn't see anything past an arm's length.

"Miss Sparkle! Hylian!" Shiro's voice continuously cried out as the archives fell apart like a row of dominoes triggered by the wind. Link did respond with shouts of his own, but all seemed to fall on deaf ears as the calls did not stop.

And then _that sound_. A sound he thought he would never have to hear again after facing the living horror that was the cursed Shadow Temple of Hyrule. The hum of the wind whistling through the very cracks of this monster's claws as it descended upon its victims.

The swift motion of drawing the blade of the Kokiri and thrusting at the creature above had been enough to save both their lives. There was a disgusting sound of steel piercing flesh, and a gigantic, dismembered hand fell out of the shadows. It clenched its fingers and exploded in a cloud of darkness before even hitting the ground.

"W-What… what was that?!" the pony quickly asked, barely having had time to see what the fiend had been.

_Wallmasters,_ the boy remarked in his thoughts. The excruciating howl of yet another monster resonated across the wing, tangled with the grunts of a struggling stallion, himself engaged in a battle somewhere in the haze. He couldn't bear to imagine what something like Ganon's army would do to a place such as this after witnessing the disasters in Hyrule.

"Hylian!" Twilight's cry hauled him back to reality, confronting him with the sight of a mare who anxiously overturned piles of books. "The book! I can't find it! It was here just now a-and now it's gone!"

_Forget the book! We need to go!_ he hoped to say as he grabbed one of her forelegs and pulled. She offered a surprising amount of resistance.

"No! We need it!" she insisted, eventually exerting enough strength to force the boy's hand loose. She dove back into the mound, just in time for Link to dodge a stray book that zoomed out of the mist and right past his head. A second one collided against his shield, and a spectral figure lounged at him soon after.

Despite its ghostly appearance, the weapons it used to attack were very solid. Strikes landed uninterruptedly on Link's shield with the precision of a trained combatant. The boy waited for the rhythmical assault to lose its tempo before pushing its foe back and plunging his sword forward. He just caught a glimpse of the plated ghost when its spirit emptied the metallic shell.

It was a pony that carried a lantern.

_A pony… Poe?_

They were regular fiends in his nemesis's army. Poes were ghostlike beings, for sure, but roughly resembled the owners of the souls that had been heavily corrupted by evil. He had fought a great number of these in his treks through a Hyrulean graveyard, and all of them had resembled humans.

This fiend had been a pony.

_But Ganondorf was never here…_

"I found it! I found it! I found it!" Twilight cried in joy, merrily hopping out of the mountain of tomes. A hardcover book levitated by her side, wrapped in a translucent lavender casing.

"HYLIAAAaaan!" The shrill noise that caught their attention was followed by a sickening crunch, and something slumped to the floor.

"Captain!" Twilight's called as they ventured into the fog.

The magnitude of the disaster only now struck them. Whatever the archives were prior to the attack, they were not now. Wherever shadows did not roam, ruined books lay open and honorable statues rested in humiliating shams of their former state. Everywhere, loose pages fluttered in a windy cradle, sharp splinters of wood mingled with jagged glass shards across the floor, and chaos reigned beyond what they could see of the fog. The constant suffering of the relics was like a nightmare for the librarian pony.

Something rolled to their feet. Both of them looked away instantly, in the event that it was what they feared.

The inevitability of the situation ended up conquering their disgust. There was no bleeding limb at their feet, much to their relief. Instead, it was the decapitated head of an ancient investigator's sculpture. They could see the statue it belonged to up ahead. One of its sides bore scorch marks, while a crack dug through its underside and surfaced on its back.

The unending grumbles of a warrior ahead gave them a new direction to follow. Just ahead, they were met with the shadows of an army that rained upon a spear-wielding pony, each of their strikes foiled by a secure flail of the weapon.

"White Castle!"

"Stay back!" he bellowed instantly, the moment of distraction costing him the ambush of an enemy.

Twilight flinched, uncertainty and panic taking over her mind. They saw only shadows, cast by the moonlight that shone in from a close-by window. She was sure that the guard was not unharmed, and just imagining a pony so roughed up and heavily bruised and yet under the constant assault of the monsters brought tears to her tired eyes.

"You're close to the door! I'll hold them back, but you two _need_ to get out of here _NOW_!"

"But-"

"No more objections, Miss Sparkle! We should never have come here in the first place!" The resonant crunch and the scream of agony were felt as though it was their own. "G-GO!"

The tug on her mane indicated that the Hylian was leaving towards what he believed was the right direction, but her legs refused to move.

"W-We can't leave him here! H-He'll…"

"HYLIAN!" the words of the pony palpably reflected his exhaustion, the voice but an echo as boy and unicorn ran away. "PROTECT… HER!"

* * *

The mere sight of the castle halls was heart-wrenching for the young mare and the boy that rode on her back, sturdily grasping her mane as they galloped across ruined passageways, the colorful fragments of the stained window portraits high above shattering beneath her hooves at every step. Now and then, a tremor would nearly shake the twosome's balance, but they would struggle forth while the night grew darker and darker, the flames of the torches that decorated the walls appearing to be the dimmest lights in the world before such dense gloominess. A pleading scream would occasionally haunt their journey, but even when faced with that dreadful spectacle, the Hylian's expression remained impassive.

Not far ahead, the cracked pavement ended abruptly, proximity revealing that a set of stairs was beyond it, a course made hazardous by the plentiful rubble that fell from above; Twilight recognized the wreckage as the remains of the magnificent stair rails as the ones placed directly at the entrance to the Canterlot Castle, the only thing between freedom and them being the entrance plaza in front of the immense castle doors.

"I can see the exit!" she called out to the boy, who had bent his head towards her neck by instinct; she, too, mimicked his gesture, clearing the staircase in the blink of an eye. She could feel the exhilaration of victory; she could almost taste the freedom that waited beyond those nearly closed doors…

…closing doors?

The unexpectedness of her shrieking halt almost brought Link tumbling to the ground; the doors had closed before them. Her eyes shifted from one side to the other; she knew the castle like the underside of her hoof. Their only opportunity had been exhausted.

"Going so soon?"

_That voice… you can feel the evil that it irradiates those who listen with…_

Though she didn't want to, she knew she had to turn around and face the towering cloaked figure that stood at the end of the steps, the same indigo aura she so feared exuding from the bleakness of its entire body and nearly cloaking the two lofty stained glass windows her sovereigns were so proud of for bearing their image.

"I-I'm not afraid of you this time!" _Celestia knows I'm wrong…_

It seemed to stiffen a laugh as it walked forward.

"And why would you not fear me, little pony?"

"B-Because…" she gulped. "I have the hero with me!"

The wheels in the creature's brain began to turn at that moment. The most unfitting expression fell upon his features - curiosity – when it tilted its head slightly to the side and his eyes widened in complete disbelief.

"Y-You?"

"It's your chance now, Hylian!" the unicorn said, but the boy numbly climbed off her back, the violent shivering of his body beginning to infect her. "H-Hylian?"

"T-The child!"

"Destroy it! Destroy the unicorn!" Ganondorf suddenly blurted out. The change in tone was so drastic it startled Twilight and Link. "It is but a foal! It cannot hurt you!"

"But he bears the Triforce! The Master Sword!"

The furious tone returned. "It carries no weapon that may harm you, Ganondorf! Slay the creature!"

The shock in Twilight's face could only be compared to that of the demon as realization struck them both. The pair of gazes fell onto the boy's back, and onto the simple, handmade scabbard that he carried.

Two swords were unsheathed.

"H-Hylian?" the mare stuttered, watching the armed boy approach its rival.

"She speaks the truth then," the bigger creature bellowed. "You are but a child, Hero of Time."

"I've faced you once already," the young swordsman serenely replied. "Age doesn't define a hero."

Ganondorf's head raised slightly in contemplation.

"No… it does not." No further words were uttered as the thief leaped forth and deftly swung his weapon. It ricocheted back as it impacted Link's shield. Taking the brief moment of weakness for his advantage, the Kokiri Sword sliced through the air…

…and did not even scratch the demon's hide.

"It appears, however, that the blade you wield does."

It was not a weapon that struck the boy, but a powerful kick of the man's monstrous legs aimed at his chest. The excruciating blow threw Link across the lobby, robbing a gasp from Twilight as he fell at her hooves. The Kokiri Sword had flown out of his hands to parts unknown.

That was the least of their problems. Their real threat approached in slow and short steps, baring its sword at them.

"And now, Hero of Time… you meet your demise."

Sparing no time, Ganondorf soared across the air towards the boy's lying body. In that short instant of flight, the derelict lobby was filled with the scent of brimstone. An obfuscating explosion of light ensued before his sword met not any part of the heroic boy's corpse, but the dusty velvet carpet beneath his feet.

"She is not a foal, Ganondorf…" the booming voice erupted from the man's throat. "She is well capable of escaping."

"Do not fret," he said, drawing his sword from the ground. "It is the way you spoke. Without the blade of evil's bane… the Hero of Time is a farce. A hurdle we shall cross… together."

With the satisfactory sound of the sword slipping back to the comfort of its scabbard, the man turned, cape fluttering at the wind's mercy. There was much to do.

"You may do what you will with the unicorn," he spoke, flashing a toothy grin. "But getting the boy… Link… is a pleasure I will reserve for myself…"


	6. In the Dark

The familiar aroma of the forest that wafted in the cool air, freshened by the loud downpour in the distance, stirred Twilight back to consciousness. Her eyes, barely even open, were caught by surprise by an unexpected radiance that was too close for comfort. The unicorn grunted at the fleeting pain in her eyes and pulled her head away. A quiet crackling, associated with the warmth on her muzzle, denounced the presence of a flame burning in front of her.

Slowly, Twilight raised her head, rubbing her temples with a hoof before attempting to focus on her surroundings. She had definitely been lying on the cold, hard surface of a cave, and the latent headache she felt further confirmed that.

The events that had led to her slumber, especially in a cave, were hazy in her mind. She vaguely recalled earthquakes tearing a castle apart, leaving her involved in a wild-goose chase for the exit while the halls crumbled behind her, and upon reaching the exit, she met not the door to freedom, but the imposing figure of a dark demon. She remembered feeling lighter not a moment later, and the monster unsheathed its sword. Just before it fell on her, however, there was a flash… and everything disappeared.

_Could it really have been just a dream?_ she pondered, gazing past the blaze before her at the mouth of the cave. It was clearly nighttime. A stormy, foreboding one at that. The occasional thunder startled her out of a trance. It didn't feel natural to the unicorn. Only once or twice had she experienced this sort of storm, and neither occasion had been pleasant.

Just then, something touched her back, putting the fur of the mare's coat standing on end. Was there something else in the cave? Had she been abducted by some foul manticore and dragged to this cave? Who had started the fire, then?

With all the care she could muster, she began turning around, hoping to catch a glimpse of her companion without upsetting it.

Reality became painfully obvious when the green clothing of the creature sleeping beside her came into view, its shield and empty scabbard left standing against the wall while a book lied on the floor at their side. It had been no dream; Canterlot really had been attacked, and she really had escaped the clutches of evil. The ambush at the archives flashed before her eyes, reminiscing more vividly than she would have liked the fall of the provisory captain of the Royal Guard, leading to their escape and this creature's attempt to defend both from the tall demon.

She frowned. Despite herself, it was at this young being that she felt angry. _'Hero of Time'… Big hero, can't even defend himself..._

The unusual sound of lumber plummeting against rock brought her attention back to the entrance, where a mound of small sticks now was. Throwing caution to the billowing wind outside, Twilight rushed forth, instantly feeling the full force of the rain the moment she stepped away from the grotto.

She narrowed her eyes and struggled to identify anything that could be exposed to such a rainstorm. The heap had obviously been carried by somepony before being dropped there, and it was likely that such individual was related to their situation.

It was at the verge of desistance that she spotted a figure far, far away. Its silhouette was conveniently made clear by a thunder that punished the earth beyond the hill where it stood. A cape fluttered in the wind behind it, and it was evident that, just like she observed it, so did the obscure character observe her.

When a powerful gale washed upon them, it unfurled its wings and fluttered away, blending with the ominous clouds that populated the sky. Twilight, still wrapped in an attempt to piece everything together – but finding the jigsaw much too difficult to complete – leisurely turned and left, her body begging for the comfort of the campfire.

As she lied down again, the Hylian shifted in its sleep, but did not wake up. She was unsure if she should be relieved or not; on one hoof, it was much more experienced in combat than she was. On the other…

"I need to do something else," she muttered in a brusque effort to stop her train of thought.

_We can't leave while this storm is out there… we wouldn't last the first mile without coming down with a cold…_

Incapable of getting up again, she summoned her magic to bring the book to her side. The Hylian had promised to take care of it when they left the archives, and take care of it it had. Here was the book, in the same pristine condition she had found it.

A page was marked, and she commenced her reading there, where Equestrian was luckily the dominant language of the manuscript. The author went on to describe something the Hylians once called 'Loftwings', a rough sketch of an oversized pelican, ridden by a creature, following suit. The report dragged on and on, meeting its climax with the description of somepony they called 'Hylia', who had given birth to their realm of 'Hyrule'. The librarian mare found herself chuckling at the etymology.

But there was also something that was consistently spoken of throughout the document. It was a weapon, persistently labeled 'Blade of Evil's Bane' – _what a romantic name_ – that was mentioned over and over again as the sword that the hero of legend carried in its journey to purge evil from the land.

Her will to read any further was suddenly lost as the remembrance of the rendezvous with the demon – _Ganondorf, it said?_ – surfaced again. That was not what had affected her so greatly. Rather, it had been a particular element of one of the guards' report to White Castle that she was chastising herself for ever even forgetting.

_The remaining Elements of Harmony are on their way to Canterlot!_

Twilight found her head resting over the closed tome, absently staring at the flames.

"I hope you're safe…" she murmured, closing her eyes. They had been heading to Canterlot. _Into_ Canterlot. Where it wasn't safe. Where monsters crept. Where their likely master was. "Please be safe…"

Exhaustion soon caught up to her for the second time that night.

* * *

_The dream always started in the same way…_

_When her eyes opened again, she would find herself lost in the immensity of a circular chamber, its ceiling so tall not even the clouds seemed to reach it. Large as it was, though, the room itself was rather plain: four lonesome banners adorned the walls north, south, east and west, the fine tissue that composed them illustrating the silhouettes of a pony, a dragon, a griffon and another, stranger being she could not recognize, while the ground was simply devoid of any decorations. She had learned from previous 'visits' to this place that, from a bird's eye view, the colorful tiles beneath her hooves revealed the same design found on compasses: a rose._

_Behind her towered an incredible stone door of immense complexity in design, the variety of symbols etched upon it simply too much for one pony to take in at once. Two icons stood out from the rest. They were a pair of insignias that she had seen her entire life and recognized very well. They were the cutie marks of Equestria's sovereigns, rationally placed at the top of the twin entryway, high above all the others, representing the royal house of their territory._

_But the thing about this place that she was always amazed by was not something she could see – it was something she could hear._

_It was the melodious sound of an instrument that she could not even see (was that a cello she heard in the foreground?), the same pleasant tune she knew since she was a foal and often whistled to the animals she took care of as a lullaby, a harmonious ballad apparently conducted by the pony who stood at the exact center of the rose. The untrained eye would have considered the constant waving of its hoof to be a random gesture, perhaps even madness, seeing as there was nothing else in that enormous location but the two of them._

_Fluttershy knew better than that._

_This pony was conducting an unseen orchestra._

_"Hum… excuse me…" she murmured, but the pegasus stallion in front of her paid no mind. "Ahem… would you, hum… could you tell me where I am?"_

_Once more, her silent squeaking did not produce any results._

_She would stand there for what felt like an eternity, in the shade of the stallion's ignorance, her location still unknown to her. The song would carry on; the maestro would continue to guide its ensemble and their instruments in the correct direction, and she would just sit there, her innate patience apparently everlasting. Occasionally, he would rise in the air, as though taken away by excitement._

_He was perhaps a prototype of the ideal stallion all mares wished for, with the flowing tailed coat on his back and faded red mane and tail over a pure white coat, strong looking wings spread out in the midst of its vocation. She knew that though she shouldn't, she still eyeballed him enthusiastically, and the time that had passed no longer mattered._

_Then, when the composition began to fade to perfect quietness, the stallion would speak, not once locking eyes with her. Instead, he would turn his head north, and stay there for the duration of his speech._

_"It is the will of harmony that our legacy must shine forth."_

The monstrous roar of a train cabin scraping its way down a rocky hill muffled her shriek of panic and prompted her to violently turn her head to the left, as if to avoid witnessing a gruesome view she could not even perceive. Forelegs over a chest that rose and lowered in quick succession, she inched back from the only light source of the tight spot she had been confined to. A shadow obscured the gap soon after, and the pegasus mare held her breath.

She could barely make out what exactly that thing that dutifully patrolled the smoking rubble was. Its features whizzed by her one very thin line at a time, the bone-chilling clatter it produced with its every movement reverberating in her lowered ears.

Her heart yelled at her that she shouldn't open the makeshift doors that secluded her from these beings, but her brain so demanded it; even if they were out there looking for her, they would never succeed if she remained hidden.

With a trembling hoof she reached for the couple of metallic surfaces. She drew her head closer to the fissure between the two surfaces to discreetly peer at her surroundings. She was still in the caves beneath Canterlot, a solid black haze still surrounded the wreckage that was once a train, and these creatures still rummaged the debris.

_I-I… I can't do it…_ she thought, slowly pulling away from the metal plates. _T-They'll catch me for sure…_

A yelp escaped her throat when a loud, cracking noise reached her from all around. Mouth kept shut tightly by a hoof, she noticed just how much the air had stilled, and how not even the slightest hum was heard. Her body tensed and her breathing stalled. Uncertainty clung to her mind like a heavy weight in the brief moments where not a single shadow crossed her path.

_A-Are… are they gone?_

Her question did not remain unanswered as a simple movement in her prison was enough to summon the howls of the creatures outside, the two metal plates protecting her suddenly being ripped apart to reveal the disfigured, skeletal visages of her invaders. Their long, cadaverous arms reached out for her all at once in a cannibalistic endeavor for the pony. She froze as she stared into the glowing orbs that were once their eyes, their remainders flickering like the dying blaze of a candle. She felt herself shrinking further and further against the seat mattress that had kept her comfort. The situation reminded her too much of a coffin to not yell her lungs out:

"H-HELP! S-SOMEPONY! P-PLEASE!"

It had been in vain, she would realize when a fang latched onto the coat of her foreleg and attempted to pull the rest of the member with it, succeeding only in removing a patch of fur that it immediately spat away to resume its assault. She knew she could not reason with them, for they were anything but animals – she could not stare into their eyes and almost telepathically guess what cruel twist of fate had provoked them into this aggressive behavior. The inevitability of the situation simply served as an incentive to further crying. When her voice grew tired, she simply rested her head back, and fell into a quiet prayer.

And as if those had been answered, one of the demoniacal beings' head flew off, causing its body to crumble to a pile of bones. An entire arm casually slid into her hideout, and she attempted to kick it away with her hind legs. Soon after, the beasts began to fall one by one as a flurry of pebbles flew in front of her.

The creatures were quick to ignore the canary colored pegasus and instinctively turn to their new enemies. The creaking of their bones at their every step was becoming as unbearable as a claw scratching a chalkboard, so much that Fluttershy covered her ears and ducked in her characteristic manner. The fright that she had managed to keep inside during the incursion was only now finding its way out of her system. She could feel the ground tremble with the on-going fight. Nevertheless, her hooves never left her ears, the idea of confronting the beasts being repulsive enough on its own.

The moment something touched her leg was the moment she unfurled her wings and slammed against the mattress as hard as she could. No matter how much she tried, she would not go through the object, and the poking continued until her legs were forced off her ears.

"…please don't hurt me please don't hurt me please don't hurt me please-"

"Thank heavens, she's alright…" the pony holding her spoke. Fluttershy instantly curled her forelegs against the pony, not even granting it the chance to sigh. She didn't need to open her eyes, for the voice she'd heard was proof enough. "It is safe now, dear… they're all gone…"

"T-They were s-so many, Rarity…" she sobbed, searching the unicorn mare's eyes. Rarity's worried frown soon melted into a warm smile. She embraced the pegasus as well, consenting to this ephemeral moment of relief. "W-Where are the others?"

"Waiting for us," she whispered. "Rainbow and I were looking for you, so she's probably gone off to find Applejack as well."

Feeling her friend had calmed down, Rarity slowly pulled away, carefully lifting her chin so that they could look into each other's eyes.

"Listen, dear; there are more of these foul creatures in here. _Celestia knows what they've done to my mane…_ But I need you to stay strong and focused."

Fluttershy's attention, however, was elsewhere. She was nervously observing the cave, her mind beginning to wander back to before any of this happened. Taking note of her spiritual absence, Rarity sighed once more.

"What h-happened?" the pegasus finally spoke, a trail of tears still fresh on either side of her muzzle. "All I remember is somepony shouting a-and…"

"I don't know…" Rarity replied. Her expression grew apprehensive. She remembered it very clearly. Looking out the window and spotting something running at the vehicle's side… it had the appearance of a beast she was sure she would only see (or rather, imagine!) in the most horrifying tales of Nightmare Night…

To think that she would be forced to fight these beasts was something she had never dreamed of.

_Then again… When did we ever have it easy as Elements of Harmony?_

"R-Rarity…" Fluttershy sniffed. The unicorn hummed in reply. "C-Can we just… wait here? For them?"

She didn't know what was going through her head when she accepted the proposal.

_For her sake,_ was the only justification she found.


	7. Rise of the Stalponies

The sheer endurance of the armed creature that walked ahead of Twilight was, in her eyes, plain simply incredible. Observing him with the quietness of a hunter targeting its prey, Twilight had already drawn a mental map of his physical limitations. Whenever she came to a conclusion, though, he always found surpassed her expectations by some bizarre coincidence where a skill was necessary.

Craftsmanship, while not necessarily a hindrance, was not exactly at everypony's reach. Granted, hooves took their toll in such chores, such as handling some of the objects that required greater precision. Magic was indubitably a blessing from above to those whose passion rested in such an arduous occupation.

Such tools were, for example, simple, rather sharp stones that the unicorn was _certain_ had been randomly picked. She'd witnessed this kind of dexterity in her draconic assistant. Utensil in hand, the Hylian had set off for the forest in her sleep, a hefty log rolling by him when he returned. Jab after jab, the trunk began to lose its size, and before long, a handmade sword made of wood had been created, and was now swinging loose in its provisional scabbard.

Trailing over a path of beaten earth under rainwater that refused to stop pouring from the pitch-black skies above, she'd long since recognized their current location, if the poorly melded fences and sporadic arrow signs stumped on the ground were any indication. They had been forsaken in the Whitetail Woods. Where exactly, she couldn't tell. She found sufficient solace in the fact that at least one of these paths, scarred as they were with hoofmarks, would lead to Ponyville proper.

If not, then, well, she was basically dooming herself to wander aimlessly in the wide open plains around the forest with the depressing company that was a creature that may as well be mute for all the words she could understand.

Coat drenched and mane drooping over her eyes, she began to feel the delayed effects of constantly walking while a storm ravaged the lands. Taking a step no longer felt safe, as if the ground would be swiped from beneath her hooves at any moment, and her eyesight was beginning to blur and weaken – though perhaps she could attribute the blame for that to her muddled mane.

Yet again, however, the Hylian exceeded her expectations with a steady demonstration of endurance and determination, as no amount of water or wind seemed enough to deter him from achieving his goal. He marched against the tempest with the implacability of a stone wall (and the personality of one as well), always choosing the path to take for her.

"H-How do you… you…" Twilight still mumbled. It was only when she spoke that the realization of just how exhausted she was struck her, words but lowly croaks that escaped her sore throat. This night was definitely not being kind for her. "…you…"

The loud splatter her head made upon hitting the mud succeeded in what her voice could not, as the Hylian was swift on his feet to turn and throw his arms around her to lift the mare's limp figure off the pool of dirt.

"I-I'm fine…"

Her companion simply shook his head in reply, gaze surveying the forest surrounding them in hopes of finding shelter. His search was interrupted by the violent cough spilling from her mouth, shaking her damp body. His impenetrable expression was shattered to fragments by apprehension. He was genuinely confused, trapped in a situation where he was reduced to his weapons and the company of a pony.

But when Twilight closed her eyes and drew a long breath silence quickly consumed, something neither had ever expected –for entirely different reasons – happened.

As if stirred by the urgency of the situation, a golden blaze enveloped the unicorn's horn, bathing the woods in a newfound radiance and nearly blinding the boy with its might. A sudden warmth appeased the frigid temperatures they suffered, and Twilight felt the familiar sensation of the sun's touch on her face.

_This power…_

'_Do you like it?_'

_Princess…_

* * *

_"It's… pretty…"_

_The princess simply smiled as Twilight walked into the room, an uneasy expression upon her after being caught prying. Naturally, she was expecting some form of punishment, but the younger ponies are always like that, afraid of the consequences regardless of what they did wrong._

_"Why don't you join me?"_

_The question had obviously caught the purple unicorn off-guard, if her surprised look was to be trusted._

_"I-I… I don't know how to play anything, Princess…"_

_"Oh!" Celestia spoke a little louder than she'd wanted, mentally chiding herself for it. "Well, I appreciate a good company just as much."_

_The filly's mouth contorted into a circle as astonishment dawned on her. Her mentor always did know what to say when she needed it._

_"Of… of course! I'd love to, Princess!"_

_With the silent giggle of a contented mother, the regal alicorn moved aside, allowing her student to sit right next to her. Thinking back to it, her eyes shimmered with nostalgia as she quietly observed the filly._

_"Alright, now listen carefully…" The first chords of the magnificent, gilded harp before her were strummed, producing a short prelude to her piece, she reckoned. "This song means very much to me… I used to play it with a very important pony once…"_

_"Was he your special somepony?"_

_"Oh no, nothing like it," the princess couldn't help but chuckle, effectively infecting the pony beside her with laughter. "No… she was just a great help when times were difficult for me."_

_"What is… what is the song?"_

_"We called it '_The Ballad of Harmony_'." She paused before lowering her head to Twilight's level and gently nuzzling her on the cheek. "One day, you'll be a very, very important pony. But with importance comes great responsibility and work."_

_Her horn shimmered, reproducing the comforting presence of the sun in the sky._

_"Whenever you think you can't go any further, think of this song." Their horns touched, and Twilight's involuntarily lit up that instant. "That is my gift to you. Never forget that."_

_Twilight's jaw remained hanging for a moment, watching her instructor in awe. Moving away, Celestia giggled again and closed her eyes. The chords were strummed once more, and this time, the melody was longer._

_It reminisced what she had heard from the halls, although listening to it when its performer was right next to her granted it an entirely different dimension._

_The composition was worthy of accompanying the achievements of the greatest characters in Equestrian history, struggling to maintain that which their sovereign defended for a long time: harmony. Occasionally, Celestia's humming gave the melody company, but the song remained just as powerful._

* * *

_"She's not waking up!"_

_"Just leave her here then! We have to go, they're almost onto us!"_

_"What?!"_

_"Hey! Don't you wanna get out of here?! Well I want it just as badly as you! And I say we haul ass before we get caught! _Again_!"_

_"I-I can save her! I can do it! …wait, she's coming to!"_

_"Whatever! I'll just wait where it's safe!"_

_"Olivia! You're a fairy companion, for the goddess's sake! Start _acting_ like one!"_

_"Like hay I am! I'd be much better off if I was! At least then all these damn ponies wouldn't be chasing me for something I didn't do!"_

_"And what did you not do?!"_

_"I'm a changeling! For them, **I'M THE ENEMY**!"_

"Change… ling?"

Separating her eyelids with as much sluggishness as she could muster, Twilight already felt the cold sting of the rain on her coat, the wind still wiping at her mane at full force. Surprisingly, she felt okay – more than okay, perhaps, considering that any pain that previously assailed her had been inexplicably vanquished. Her first image was that of the Hylian's face, sporting a grin that was blemished by distress, his arms under her head to support her weight.

There was something else to it. Right above him, seemingly hovering in place, was a deep green, luminescent orb. If it had eyes, Twilight would have known for certain whether or not it stared directly into hers. In her current state, all she could ascertain was that it seemed paralyzed on its spot.

"What… is that?"

As though he had been struck by realization, the boy's eyes went wide, and one of his hands hesitated to grab the fairy. That never came to pass, for the sprite was faster, managing to dodge the hand's grasp and hide behind his hat.

"I-It… it was speaking!"

No reply was given to her again – she didn't expect one from the swordsman anyways, so she pressed on, ridding herself of Link's support so she could stand by herself.

"I heard you talking! You said something about Changelings!"

The Hylian raised both hands in an attempt to quiet down the mare, but found it unnecessary as a distant roar made its point in marking the approach of hostility. Shooting his gaze to the path behind them, Link could definitely now spot the turmoil that drew nigh, hurling mud in all directions with the power of a hurricane.

They were many.

Too many.

"Link, we need to go. NOW."

"Link?" Twilight echoed, raising an eyebrow at the boy, but shaking her head right after to focus on another topic, one requiring a glare to be thrown at the sprite. "I still don't have your na-"

"Listen up, pony! If you want to live, you follow us! Otherwise, just run someplace else! So put your horseapples behind and helps us outta this!" the fairy retorted in such an unexpectedly violent way that even Link's head arched back momentarily. The inbound monsters' howling remark was enough of a reminder of what his mission was right now. Sword and shield at hand, Link stood up, facing the pack. "What?! Y-You're not going to fight those things, right?!"

"Wait, you can understand what he sa-" The sharpness with which the fairy turned to Twilight was everything she needed to not speak any further. "Okay! I get it!"

Snapping his fingers to call their attention, the boy murmured something to the fairy, a reluctant sigh ensuing before a question was asked:

"…He wants to know if you know how to fight."

* * *

"Rainbow, on your tail!"

The fury of the multicolored pegasus pony's back hooves sent the horrid creature planning to ambush her careening across the cave, stopping only when its skeletal frame met the underside of a tipped wagon, where bones were flung across the air at random.

Despite the situation, Rainbow Dash knew she could still score some points against her unofficial rival; so without a moment's hesitation, she flared her wings and zapped towards the orange earth pony, headbutting an airborne skull pony before it could strike.

Applejack eyed her with annoyance, a reaction cut short by a looming claw that very narrowly missed her side, its failure being rewarded by a precise buck to the cranium, shattering the limb to fragments with its sheer power.

One success was just as quickly evened out by a loss with the clean swipe that landed on her flank during the rebound of the move, temporarily throwing her balance off; but proud as the pony was, she'd never let her foe go away without retribution, which came in the form of a head-first slam and finished off with the fiend's complete annihilation under her forehooves.

It was that last, more complex strike that made her realize just how surrounded she was, but walking backwards so as to keep an eye on all her opponents revealed only that Rainbow was in a similar situation, the twosome sitting back-to-back while the carcasses swarmed ever closer.

"Ah reckon ya don't have a plan we can use?"

"Actually, I do!" The pegasus raised a hoof towards a nearly imperceptible entrance atop a heap of rocks, rails snaking from underneath it. "That's where I came from, and that's also where Rarity's waiting; we make it there, we're off the hook!"

"Ya seem mighty confident about that plan."

"Eh, didn't hear ya come up with a better one."

The earth pony tilted her Stetson back, a tiny cloud of dust flying off its folds.

"Point taken."

"Race ya there!" With that, Rainbow was gone in a streak of vibrant colors, choosing to course directly through the horde instead of flying overhead, effectively opening up a tight path between her friend and their goal.

_That pony… Ah swear. On'a these days…_

But these thoughts were mere whispers in the back of her mind, the long run and the pressure of its time constraints weighing down on the mare, the walls of skeletal beings closed up and in no matter how fast she ran.

On the other hoof, Dash, who had already reached the top of the mound without the least of concerns, seemed to be taking this as an amusing challenge, literally hovering in excitement as Applejack was forced to run faster and faster.

She met the peak of this enthusiasm when the swarm blocked not her way back, but her way forward. Lowering her head like an enraged bull and hastening her gallop, the earth pony was but inches away from the barrier of enemies when she took off into the air in a magnificent jump, the skeletons naught but a hurdle as she climbed all the way to Rainbow's side, stopping only to utter a '_you owe me_' before crawling through the hole to safety.

The pegasus, of course, let out a short snigger. Her friend's annoyance was the trophy for a successful jab.

Her mirth was quickly forgotten in the heat of the escape. She followed her friend while the cursed ponies struggled to reach them like a pack of hungry wolves, never truly succeeding in climbing. Any further attempt was completely cut off with the placement of an object in front of the opening, trapping the fiends in the cave.

* * *

"They're Stalponies!"

Olivia's voice was somehow clear over the obnoxious sound of bones clacking against the armor their fiends possessed, their cracked hooves makeshift claws in the battle they fought.

Link was pleasantly surprised to observe just how durable the wood of the log he had picked up was. No matter how many times he smashed the sword into his enemy's skulls, the weapon never seemed to even fracture.

_Unlike certain sticks from the Deku._

Unfortunately, this was not the case for their armor, as a distressing crack rang from the sword's edge whenever it impacted on the metallic plating. Coupled with their erratic movement, Link was having a hard time striking only what was skeletal about them.

Twilight had proven a very useful asset to the battle at hand; he could best compare her horn to a sort of magical bow given the way it fired off a piercing beam of light that knocked back even the bulkiest of the foes.

However, the swarm never seemed to end. One after the other, more Stalponies would appear from the little bushes on either side of the road or, much to Twilight's dread, from the mud itself. They had long since picked up their strategy; by surrounding the pair, they could easily overwhelm them, were it not for Twilight's capability to repel these foes with a potent outburst of magic. Link himself had one or two tricks up his sleeve to deal with this kind of situation: planting a foot on the ground, he would spin over it while his arm was outstretched, delivering the power of a spin attack to his enemies.

"Oh-oh, there's more coming," Olivia cried out when their numbers lowered significantly, flying down to her temporary companion's side. "We can't handle all these creeps! We gotta get out of here!"

"She's right!" Twilight concurred, much to the annoyance of both the females. "If we don't run, they'll never stop coming in!"

Though the Hylian boy wavered for the briefest moment, he too nodded, not even bothering to ask for the unicorn's consent before hopping onto her back and having her gallop her way across the growing mud pools, Stalponies hot on their heels at every turn they took.

[i]What happened to Whitetail Woods…[/i] Was all she could think as the forest became more devastated the further they went, to the point where entire groups of these evil creatures dotted the territory where once green trees had been torn off the ground and basically chucked away in whatever direction the wind desired.

Nevertheless, their worst fears had not yet been confirmed; that only occurred when the unicorn's trail ended before her eyes with the gigantic obstacle the mountain between Ponyville and the woods provided. Leaping to turn around, she was met with the gruesome sight that an entire horde of living skeletons under a stormy night sky could constitute, the rain's water not even capable of cleansing their bare bones of the soil that stained them after spending an indefinite amount of time buried beneath the ground.

Never one to give up, Link stood and somersaulted directly over his steed's head, landing on the mud with the gracefulness of a bird and receiving the mute complaints of Twilight and Olivia behind him.

_Don't worry. I'll be care-_

"LIIIIINK!"

The boy didn't take long to process the fairy's thunderous bellow. An indescribable sense of distress overtook his mind and body when he spotted, from the corner of his eye, a Stalpony that fell directly from above, ready to strike down the stunned swordsman in his moment of weakness.

There was a swish a split second later, and the Stalpony was no more, the dark blue spear stuck through its ribcage keeping it imprisoned against a nearby tree. Not a moment later, their enemies' skulls were impaled by similar weapons that mingled with the rain itself to punish their foes.

Blinking in bewilderment, Link very nearly had to cover his ears when a voice louder than he'd ever heard **boomed** from the skies, as though the goddesses themselves had been angered:

"**THOU WILL NOT HARM TWILIGHT SPARKLE OR HER FRIENDS, FOUL FIENDS!**"


End file.
